I Am David

In 1952, the polyglot twelve year-old David (Ben Tibber), who was raised in the Communist Belene Prison Camp in Bulgaria, witnesses the death of his friend and protector Johannes (Jim Caviezel) and escapes from the concentration camp in the night. He is advised to mistrust everybody and together with a piece of bread, a compass, a piece of soap, a jackknife and a sealed envelope to be delivered in Denmark, he travels though Greece and Italy heading North. Along his journey, David discovers the beauty of the world and slowly he changes his behavior with people. When he meets Sophie (Joan Plowright), an old lady that lives in Switzerland and likes to paint as hobby, she asks David to paint his face; later she invites David to have lunch with her in her house, and David finally discloses his quest to her.

"I Am David" is a magnificent journey to the goodness of people. The expressive Ben Tibber has a stunning performance in the role of the boy David, who was raised confined in a concentration camp and surrounded by cruelties, that begins to smile and trust people along his travel through Europe. It is amazing how this young actor is able to transmit these sensations and emotions through his face and eyes. Joan Plowright performs a wise old woman that teaches David that most of the people are good and opens his heart. The direction, performances, cinematography, locations, pace, message etc., everything works perfectly in this great movie. Last but not the least, the conclusion is heartbreaking. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

This is the sort of film that claims merit in allowing you to see a bad situation work out in tear-induced happiness. Its a sort of enigma why there is a market for these; I suppose we all carry unresolved injustices in our hearts and like to see the promise of them resolved. In getting this, we gloss over the mechanics. For instance this has gotten an award from some morality institute though you'd be hard pressed to find anything or character in it that is actually an exemplar.

There's determination, and there's resolution, and somehow we superimpose admiration on the participants.

The really fascinating thing about this is that it really is two films: a long first part, followed by a quite different second part.

The first part follows a boy's escape. There actually is little to say other than this small bit, he escapes, and continues escaping.

The second part finds him with Joan Plowright and takes us to the resolution.

These two parts are from completely different cinematic worlds. It is true that many movies are remembered only for their ending and viewers will forgive all sorts of clunks in the journey if they recall the end fondly. But this first part clunks like old ball bearings in soup. There's one unnecessarily improbable escape after another. Each one adds nothing, except to underscore the difficulty of what our hero is doing. But that difficulty gets undermined at every turn. He never seems hungry, in pain, in the least uncomfortable. He always "gets away." None of the characters or places touch him in any way.

It seems as if the writer is putting us through this long process for only one reason, so that we can get a large number of flashbacks, each one revealing a little more of what becomes the real story. I'm prepared for indirect narrative; its an amazingly effective tool that I study. Here, we sort out the sense of the thing as he does.

But the container of this first part is so sickly sweet almost every viewer will give up, unless you live in a world of Sunday School cartoons.

The second part is as competent as the first is incompetent. Here, we harvest all the information we have been given in the flashbacks. Plus we have a real actor involved instead of folks who believe beatified shining is acting.

Here;s where we get three twists in the narrative, one large. And there's the hint that our boy is an illicit child, and the complications that brings. Its almost enough to make this watchable. But that first part puts us in a prison we cannot escape.

Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.

There's just so much to say about "I am David" that I feel like I can't get it all in. From the directing, to the script; from the photography to the acting... it all just works.

This movie is a breath of fresh air from the Hollywood machine that churns out lifeless epics, tasteless comedies, and meaningless dramas in the name of money. "I Am David" aims not to collect big at the box office, but to convey passion and art through cinema.

It follows the escape of a young boy named David from a concentration camp during the Bulgarian War. Carrying only a small satchel with a mysterious envelope and a few other items, David sets across the countryside to reach Denmark. He doesn't know (and neither do we until the end) why he's going to Denmark or what's in the envelope; he's just doing as instructed by a mentor at the concentration camp.

The characters in the film are phenomenal. Jim Caviezel's character is surprisingly absent for most of the film; but nevertheless is an integral part of the story. (I have yet to see him in a role that I didn't like.) I don't think you could draw up a more perfect child actor for the role of David than Ben Tibber. His performance in this movie is Oscar-worthy to me. And Joan Plowright (you'll recognize her from "Dennis the Menace") is verrrrry convincing in her role. Director Paul Feig has a cameo in the movie.

The soundtrack and colors work wonders; taking your breath away with each shot. The Damien Rice piece at the end is very heartfelt and true to the movie as well. The limited dialogue makes the characters seem simple, yet true to life.

Without giving too much away, I highly recommend this movie to EVERYONE. It's charming, funny, sad, and inspirational. Most movies these days have no redeeming value whatsoever, but with "David" this is not the case. It saddens me that Americans would prefer the rehashed, regurgitated crap of Hollywood over this brilliant work of art. I'm not familiar with Feig's work, but following this movie, I'm going to be sure to check out other works by him.

Please watch this one. It's a real winner.

This movie speaks to the purest parts of the soul, beckoning the viewer to take not just a journey with David, but to the innermost parts of themselves.

If you know someone who is crying out to be heard and understood, someone desperately seeking a safe person to reach out to but doesn't know how to take that first step.....encourage them to go on a journey with this young boy through a harrowing physical and emotional journey of his life.

This movie touched me in a way that very few have. In fact, it moved me so much I had to tell many friends and family members and they too agreed...it is a beautiful story to watch and celebrate. Some have emailed me the day after and said...."We were up late at night with our son...clapping and crying during the final scenes." To the cast and crew of this film....thanks for using your talents to warm our hearts and help us believe again in the good hearts of those around us.

Pay close attention to young Ben Tibber, who portrays the central character of this film, I Am David. All throughout the film, the mood of the scene is defined just by the expression on his face, especially his eyes, and he can change it in an instant. I watched this young actor in total amazement. We follow David on his solo journey of escape from a brutal communist labor camp to a land very vague in his mind, Denmark. There are many beautiful scenes of colorful villages and towns, fields of sunflowers and sweeping vistas of the hills and valleys that we share with David, in sharp contrast to the horrifying memories of life in the labor camp, that haunts him. Those that helped him escape gave him one primary rule: don't trust anyone! As David travels along the roads to his destiny he meets many characters along the way and we wonder, will he, or should he, trust this person? As the viewer, we desperately want somebody to comfort and assist this wonderful boy. The veteran actress, Joan Plowright, splendidly portrays one of those characters that David encounters; but can he confide in her to help him on his way? The director and screenwriter, Paul Feig, doesn't rush the story, although it does move very quickly at the end. Mostly, he lets us observe David as the boy wisely and carefully analyzes each situation as it develops. The end of the film wraps up nicely with a very surprising and interesting revelation of the storyline. I watched this film at the Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis and had great expectations upon going in to see it. I was not disappointed. I Am David, is an outstanding film.