Kidnapped

Armand Assante turned in a superb performance as a Scottish loyalist in Robert Louis Stevenson's "Kidnapped." Mr. Assante was totally credible in his role as a man who would stick to the principles of truth, justice, and loyalty that the author highlighted in the novel. Any fan of Robert Louis Stevenson must definitely see this outstanding motion picture.

This version of Kidnapped boasts the best cast yet, led by Armand Assante, Brian McCardie (Rob Roy), Brendan Gleeson (Braveheart), David Kelly (Waking Ned Devine) and a brilliant portrayal by Patrick Malahide as Uncle Ebenezer. It moves along smoothly and quickly and never drags. It was filmed in Ireland which fills in perfectly for Scotland. Although it looks exactly like Scotland, I wonder why they didn't film there; production costs I'm guessing. At any rate, production values are superb, the music score is fine and director Ivan Passer did an exceptional job. McCardie is perfect as David Balfour and is adept at both serious and comical scenes. Assante is as good a swashbuckler as ever there was. I've been waiting for years for this to come out on DVD and now it has arrived (1/2007). I very highly recommend this film.

When I read the other reviews I can't believe they cover the same movie, Generally I'm not too critical and enjoy a wide variety of genres, in particular adventure stories and was looking forward to watching this. I haven't read the book but I doubt it would have any impact on my lack of appreciation for this movie.

The characters are hollow, the storyline seems patched together and the dialogs are artificial.

At the end of the movie, I was left wondering what the whole point of the story was. Perhaps I need to watch it again, perhaps I missed something, but I highly doubt it.

Although this version of "Kidnapped" has a lot of swashbuckling energy going for it, there are major points in its disfavor. As other commentators have written, it adds in all sorts of needless superfluous plots that weaken Stevenson's tale. The army office Reid did not appear in RLS's novel, nor did Flora McDonald, nor did the girl with whom Davie falls in love. Yes, David Balfour does fall in love in Stevenson's sequel "Catriona," but with a different girl.

In addition, Ireland does *not* look like Scotland. Nor does Armande Assante, for all his swashbuckling, look like RLS's description of Alan Breck, which was based upon historical fact. True, the movie is beautifully photographed, and the few portions that do homage to Stevenson's novel are well done. But in many respects, this film owes rather little to that novel.

The only film version that respects the novel is the Walt Disney version. That one is not yet available on DVD. Go figure.

Excellent family entertainment with outstanding acting performances. Plenty of action and adventure complimented with beautiful scenery. What a joy to watch a film without graphic violence, language and sex! Highly recommended for the most critical movie viewer.