thomascrown00

When I see films like this one, I can only lament the seeming inability of American filmmakers to create works of this depth and meaning. Perhaps its the lack of an American audience willing to embrace and support films like this, perhaps the over-influence of commercialism on the industry here -- even on most independents -- but the sad reality is that this kind of quality work is so often only to be had from European directors and casts. What is even more remarkable about this film are the stellar performances from the numerous young actors who are at the very heart of this movie, a consequence of a sensitive and masterful director. This is a movie that stays with you.

This is a film that Frank Capra could have pulled off, with implausible situations and earnest, appealing characters stealing the hearts of the viewers, but with enough character development to actually achieve empathy and caring. Unfortunately, in the hands of this director, this is a saccharine, predictable bore with wooden characters that are more caricature than character. What's worse, the film wastes the enormous skill and potential of a host of seriously great actors, including Anthony Quinn and Giancarlo Gianini. It even wastes the unsurpassed skill of Maurice Jarre as the creator of some of Hollywood's greatest film scores (Lawrence of Arabia, Witness, A Passage to India, among others). The cinematography is excellent, and the settings beautiful, but the movie is a bust.