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Paradise Road (1997)

Glenn Close , Frances McDormand , Bruce Beresford  |  R |  DVD
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (67 customer reviews)

Price: $15.20 & FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details
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Product Details

  • Actors: Glenn Close, Frances McDormand, Pauline Collins, Cate Blanchett, Jennifer Ehle
  • Directors: Bruce Beresford
  • Writers: Bruce Beresford, David Giles, Betty Jeffrey, Martin Meader
  • Producers: Andrew Yap, David Giles, Graeme Rattigan
  • Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
  • Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
  • Subtitles: English, Spanish
  • Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Rated: R (Restricted)
  • Studio: 20th Century Fox
  • DVD Release Date: March 13, 2001
  • Run Time: 122 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (67 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B000056BSH
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,468 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
  • Learn more about "Paradise Road" on IMDb

Special Features

None.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Earnest and well-meaning, this film also accumulates power as it goes along, despite its inability to generate any moral complexity. But then how complex can you get in a story about the Japanese imprisonment and mistreatment of an international group of women (including Glenn Close, Frances McDormand, and Julianna Margulies)? Written and directed by Bruce Beresford, it's based on a true story. Japanese brutality has been well chronicled before; the real story here is the way these women of different social and ethnic backgrounds achieve a sense of solidarity in the face of potentially deadly abuse. Strong performances and many uplifting and moving moments. --Marshall Fine

Product Description

In a time of war, an extraordinary group of women turned a song of hope into a symphony of triumph. From the director of "Driving Miss Daisy" comes a true story of courage, triumph, friendship and strength starring Glenn Close ("Dangerous Liaisons"), Oscar®-Winner Frances McDormand (1996 Best Actress, "Fargo") and Emmy Award Winner Julianna Margulies (TV's "ER"). This compelling drama reveals the heroic actions of a group of women held prisoner by the Japanese during World War ll. These diverse women from different countries, speaking different languages, unite to form a vocal orchestra-creating a life affirming symphony of human voices.

Customer Reviews

It bares the human soul, from the cruelty of one Japanese officer to the compassion of onother. lobo5110@AOL.com  |  13 reviewers made a similar statement
Please enjoy this read - I highly recommend it. Shannon  |  14 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
55 of 57 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars Scenes Missing July 13, 2004
By A Customer
Format:DVD
I just watched Paradise Road on DVD and was very disappointed. I didn't see scenes I remember in the VHS version. I like the movie very much, but would not have purchased a version that was shortened. There are two scenes I remember from renting the movie previously. Those being where Jennifer Ehle meets her husband while he is attempting to escape the men's camp, and also the scene where Miss Drummond is buried and Glenn Close's character begins to hum and tap the Bolero piece the orchestra did. I have no idea why Fox would delete those scenes. The cover of the DVD indicates the movie is 132 minutes long, however my counter stopped at 110 or so. So please be forwarned, if you purchase the DVD you will not get the whole movie. Other than that, I would say the movie is worth having in a home collection.
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39 of 40 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars A woman's vocal orchestra in a Japanese internment camp November 20, 2004
Format:DVD
Right before the fall of Singapore in February 1942 a group of women, predominantly English but also including Dutch, Australian, and other Western nationalities, were evacuated on ship to Australia. However, when the ship is sunk they are captured by the Japanese and put in an internment camp. Over the rest of the war they suffer the attendant horrors of being the prisoners of the Japanese and they rise above their condition by creating a vocal orchestra, a chorus that performs hummed renditions of the works of Mozart, Dvorak, and Ravel.

There are certainly some memorable and harrowing moments in "Paradise Road" reflecting the brutality of life in a Japanese internment camp. Such horrors are supposed to stand in contrast to the beautiful music these women created in their prison camp by putting together a vocal orchestra. However, at the end of this 1999 film from director Bruce Beresford we learn that the vocal orchestra only performed for a couple of years before half its members had died, and we simply do not get the sense that things were that bad in this film, even though intellectually we know this must have been the case. As is pointed out, the Japanese do not like Europeans, prisoners, or women, and of course with these women we have all three. In contrast, one of the women refuses to hate her captors, explaining: "I just can't bring myself to hate people. The worse they behave, the sorrier I feel for them."

I suppose it is politically incorrect today to show the brutality the Japanese displayed in dealing with prisoners. The concept of surrender was an anathema to the Japanese and soldiers who surrendered rather than die in battle or kill themselves were seen as being without honor.
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41 of 43 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Microcosm of Japanese Actions Across WW II Asia August 23, 2002
By A Customer
Format:VHS Tape
A fascinating, moving film of European civilian women interned in a Japanese prisoner of war camp, *Paradise Road* tells a tale of courage and fortitude amidst the incredible barbarism of the war-period Japanese army. Kate Blanchett's character is especially moving. The film (and book) deal in microcosm with Japanese actions across Asia towards civilians - and not just Europeans of course (tragic as that was), but Asians, too. When I lived in Hong Kong and Singapore in the 90s, memories among locals were still very strong about Japanese behaviour - which across Asia resulted in the deaths of twenty million Asians: in Hong Kong Chinese villagers in the remoter New Territories at times still attacked Japanese tourist coach parties, while in Stanley, HK, I lived a few yards from the notorious site of the Stanley internment camp, where the Japanese brutally treated civilians, and had earlier, a few steps away at a nearby Stanley prep school, raped and bayonnetted the British nurses manning a make-shift hospital during the Battle of of Hong Kong. Camps for European civilian women existed across Asia, not just in "two" spots, as another reviewer suggests (these are simply all that are mentioned in the film) - in Sumatra, Java, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Borneo, etc, while the same reviwer's wondering if the Japanese raped anybody is simply lack of knowledge. Some fine books to read on the subject, as moving as *Paradise Road*, include Lavinia Warner's *Women Beyond the Wire*, Jean Gittins' *Stanley: Behind Barbed Wire* and George Wright-Nooth's *Prisoner of the Turnip Heads* ("Turnip Heads" is what the Cantonese of Hong Kong call the Japanese) - some are printed in Britain and available through Amazon's UK site.... Read more ›
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19 of 21 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Paradise road - truly moving January 10, 2000
By A Customer
Format:VHS Tape
I have seen many movies about the hardships endured by prisoners in camps during World War II, but this particular film truly moved me. It was so inspiring to see how these women, living in such horrible circumstances, could still find the time and the courage to lift their voices in song. I have seen the movie several times and am anxious to purchase a copy so that I can share it with friends and family. There is also a book which relates the true story of these women and their remarkable achievement. A true portrayal of how the human spirit can endure and soar!
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars What a movie! December 5, 1999
Format:VHS Tape
This movie is must see if you are at all interested in the true story that it is based on. It is about a group of women that are held in a Japanese camp during the second world war. They start to form a voice orchestra to keep themselves happy and eventually overcome hardship. It is a fabulous film ...I 've seen it about 10 times.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful
First saw original on PBS then found this version. It was great. As a African-American woman who enjoys quality movies of all kinds, this did not let me down. Read more
Published 20 days ago by Leslie McKinney
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Movie
I've watched it twice now and I plan on watching it again soon!!! I like the way that it shows life in a POW camp from a woman's prospective!
Published 2 months ago by Howard Mordell
5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational
Great movie, very inspiring. The tragic depravity of humanity is matched and exceeded by the creativity and courage of the spirit when moved beyond selfishness. Read more
Published 2 months ago by R. T. Nolin
5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorite movies!
If you love textury, involved pieces of drama, this movie is for you. Great character development, incredible acting, and a truly moving story.
Published 2 months ago by Tonya Culton
5.0 out of 5 stars Glenn Close is outstanding in this movie!!
Thoroughly, enjoyed this Movie, of course I think Ms Close is a wonderful actress, most anything she does is so enjoyable, including this one!!
Published 3 months ago by Carol A. Signet
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Movie
A dramatization of a true story, this is a wonderful presentation of a situation that occurred during WW2. Read more
Published 3 months ago by George Foust
5.0 out of 5 stars Great story, great movie, with so much covered about WW II in Pacific.
One of our family's favorite "Christian" movies. Portrays real Believers in midst of horrific circumstances. Scenery, acting, and script very, very professional. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Larry C
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful
This is an incredible true story. I have a CD with the performances from the sheet music that was saved from that time. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Janice L. Jones
5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible film!
I am so glad that I stumbled across this movie. I love movies with strong female leads and this one most certainly qualified. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Cocorah
5.0 out of 5 stars PARADISE ROAD
very fast response. went very smooth. price was great and the quality of the DVD. I would recommend this product and seller, to any one. Thank you very much.
Published 7 months ago by ALICE
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