23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Historically striking!, April 18, 2000
Great rendition of the famous Joseph Conrad interpretation of colonial powers struggles in the early 20th century. Superior plot and acted extremely powerful and convincing. Historical routes in British Honduras (modern day Belize) and Guatemala, this story takes on so much and delivers every single drop of blood and drama put into it, in fact, it makes me want to see a sequel or another series based on Costa Aguana and it's inhabitants. There is a beginning, middle, and an end. This is superior entertainment and well worth the money paid for it! For those of you who have read the book, the movie does justice to every word that Joseph Conrad wrote.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Epically Staged, August 27, 2000
This review is from: Nostromo [VHS] (VHS Tape)
The makers of this extravagant and picturesque adaptation of Josef Conrad's expansively-thriven novel had an obviously greater passion for the story and its vast scope than was within their means to portray it adequately on film. Yet, I must say, they do touch the soul of the story.
Conrad's novel, set in the imaginary South American province of Sulaco in the imaginary Republic of Costaguana, encompasses a wide spectrum of humanity. You see this come alive at once in the novel - with promise of turbulence wrought within the tale of Sulaco and its citizens, living and dying within "an inviolable sanctuary from the temptations of a trading world in the solemn hush of the deep Golfo Placido as if within an enormous semi-circular and unroofed temple open to the ocean, with its walls of lofty mountains hung with the mourning draperies of cloud." ~And that's only in the first paragraph of the novel! Within the first 10 minutes of the film, the like portrait is developed and set forth upon......with its silver mine the center of ambition that drives this story onward....and, ah...with that much atmosphere to immerse oneself within!
This film indeed does tell the tale...and with an endearment that is greatly enhanced by the brilliant performances of many of its leading actors: Albert Finney, Colin Firth, Serena Scott Thomas, Joaquim de Almeida, Ruth Gabriel, Paul Brooke, and Brian Dennehy - each of whom, I must say, exude dexterously the multi-prismed souls of their respective characters with heart and with passion.
But there are downfalls - and I must say that they are apparent - for key players in this epic drama give but marginal, disheartened performances. -- Lothaire Bluteau as Martin, Romina Mondello as Giselle, and Claudio Amendola as Nostromo, himself, "Our Man" - who had all the looks of the character I'd imagined while reading the book, but who ultimately lacked the depth of passion innately essential for the role of Nostromo.
However, it cannot be denied that the vast scope of timeless triumph and defeat that was inherent in the classic novel and that shall forever tell of the nature of the human heart - as well as a picturesque landscape and seascape that give allure to my flight-forging vampire soul - has been in this movie portrayed in a fashion I suspect would have made even Josef Conrad somewhat proud~
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Archimedes Succeeds, July 17, 2004
This review is from: Nostromo [VHS] (VHS Tape)
When Archimedes declared that he could lift the earth with a long enough lever,the extent of his endeavors became readily apparent. Joseph Conrad in "Nostromo" attempted much more using the lever of language.He created his own universe with the finest prose that has ever been written.
The BBC attempted not much less converting this perhaps best ever work of literature into film. I congratulate them first for their enormous courage, their incredible endurance, and for their excellent production. After having tried to read this wonderful literary work most of my life, how wonderful it was to relax and through the medium of film have it revealed.
I could criticize this work, but it would be like critizing the dragon for having too many scales, or the elephant for its ugly
trunk. That this work was even finished deserves immense praise. That it succeeds as great entertainment to modest
moviegoers like me, implies that it deserves some critical acclaim. "Nostromo" as a work of literature will last as long as mankind, and I suspect that this movie will too. I am truly thankful for those bold ones so full of love that they were willing to hand us their lives through their work that we might have a blueprint for tomorrow. Their stories are every bit as interesting as the stories they wrote and rendered into film.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
