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The Emerald Forest

The Emerald Forest

List Price: $14.95
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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A favorite for as long as I can remember
Review: I must have been about 6 the first time that I saw this movie and I remember that at even that young of an age I knew it was something special.I hope that my son will enjoy it as much as I do when he is old enough to understand it.I should really get a new coppy because the one that I have had for 15 years had become a bit worn out.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Excellent Film
Review: I really enjoyed the storyline of Boorman's Emerald Forest. I only wish the video was released in it's original widescreen to fully capture the great location photography.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Boorman's Haunting Movie
Review: I remember seeing this movie when it came out with a friend, who had to say that "the natives all had perfect teeth." If you're looking for a documentary, then this film is going to disappoint you. However, if you're looking for a beautiful, haunting film, one that will stay with you for a very long time, then this is a film for you. There are a number of themes at work here, everything from the destruction of the rain forest to the white man's influence on "primitive" tribes to a man's search for his son to a couple of swipes at Werner Herzog. The visuals are dazzling, your television never looked so good or so green. Rather than the botched widescreen version of Excaliber, the widescreen version of this film does true justice to the movie. The widescreen does allow you to see more and does take your breath away. While not all of it works (the end at the dam scene just doesn't fit the rest of the picture), enough of it does to leave the viewer wanting much more. The acting is very good but it's the vistas that the viewer will remember. Ok, now, Fox, time for the same treatment to Zardoz! Five stars out of five.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Boorman's Haunting Movie
Review: I remember seeing this movie when it came out with a friend, who had to say that "the natives all had perfect teeth." If you're looking for a documentary, then this film is going to disappoint you. However, if you're looking for a beautiful, haunting film, one that will stay with you for a very long time, then this is a film for you. There are a number of themes at work here, everything from the destruction of the rain forest to the white man's influence on "primitive" tribes to a man's search for his son to a couple of swipes at Werner Herzog. The visuals are dazzling, your television never looked so good or so green. Rather than the botched widescreen version of Excaliber, the widescreen version of this film does true justice to the movie. The widescreen does allow you to see more and does take your breath away. While not all of it works (the end at the dam scene just doesn't fit the rest of the picture), enough of it does to leave the viewer wanting much more. The acting is very good but it's the vistas that the viewer will remember. Ok, now, Fox, time for the same treatment to Zardoz! Five stars out of five.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Still Spellbinding
Review: I saw this movie in 1985. It must have made an impression on me because I never forgot it, and it has been on my all-time favorite list for almost twenty years. Recently, I ordered the movie to make sure that it was as wonderful as I had remembered. My memory served me correctly; I loved it! The most mesmerizing aspect of the movie is its' theme of innocence. (Charley B. is so angelic; I just want to take him home with me!) The jungles are beautiful and unspoiled and the Invisible People are free from corruption. I guess that's what attracted me to the movie in the first place; innocence is so precious but on the verge of becoming extinct, just like the people of the rainforest. It just makes me want to cry... I do wonder if the story of the lost boy is really true; I can't find anything historical to back it up. As a matter of fact, the revised print (on the back of the video sleeve) coins the movie "a parable." Oh well, either way, it's still a keeper.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: educational
Review: I'd say it is an inspirational movie.

A young white boy gets kidnapped against his free will. Now when he reaches adulthood he not only accepts his place among the tribe but also prefers it above his own old home and family.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An unfairly neglected classic
Review: It was heartening to read so many glowing reviews of EF, and see how many people consider it a "favorite" film. It has been a favorite of mine for many years. It is one of the very best films I know of in the "action/adventure" genre, yet transcends that genre with political smarts and vivid subplots. This kind of story used to be featured in magazines like ARGOSY when I was a kid, but on a much pulpier level.One plotline all the other reviewers seem to have missed is the discovery of the prostition ring by the Powers Boothe character late in the film.There is one brief scene in this film which remains my favorite ten or so seconds of film of all time. It sends shivers up my spine every time I see it: the viewer is suddenly transported high up in the air, flying right alongside some eagle-like bird, on some relentless dreamlike mission conjured up by the rainforest tribe and their rituals. Worth waiting for, even if the movie leaves you cold / A GREAT film, from one of the greatest living directors.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: "Do you know my people?"
Review: John Boorman's "The Emerald Forest" marks the director's return to nature a decade after "Deliverance" (1972). Once again, Boorman so ably captures the essence of the outdoors that it almost becomes a tangible supporting character. Nature in the cinematic world of Boorman is an entity to be revered and feared if you know what is good for you.

Bill Markham (Powers Boothe) is an American engineer who is in Brazil to help oversee the construction of a dam. While inspecting the construction site, tragedy strikes when his young son, Tommy (William Rodriguez) disappears. Haunted by his loss, Markham returns to the rainforest every year for ten years in search of his lost son. He eventually finds the adult Tommy (Charley Boorman) - now know as Tomme - living with the native "Invisible People." As Markham tries to re-establish his relationship with his son, he slowly learns of the devastating ecological and cultural consequences his industrial world has had upon the area.

"The Emerald Forest" sometimes comes across as too heavy-handed in its critique of modern society's threat towards the natural world. Yet, despite its labored message, the film's central story of Markham's searching for his son is involving on an emotional and dramatic level. Furthermore, the scenes with the natives are an insightful venture into an unfamiliar way of life that is as compelling as it is informative. Chalk up "The Emerald Forest" as another little nugget from the Eighties.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: "Do you know my people?"
Review: John Boorman's "The Emerald Forest" marks the director's return to nature a decade after "Deliverance" (1972). Once again, Boorman so ably captures the essence of the outdoors that it almost becomes a tangible supporting character. Nature in the cinematic world of Boorman is an entity to be revered and feared if you know what is good for you.

Bill Markham (Powers Boothe) is an American engineer who is in Brazil to help oversee the construction of a dam. While inspecting the construction site, tragedy strikes when his young son, Tommy (William Rodriguez) disappears. Haunted by his loss, Markham returns to the rainforest every year for ten years in search of his lost son. He eventually finds the adult Tommy (Charley Boorman) - now know as Tomme - living with the native "Invisible People." As Markham tries to re-establish his relationship with his son, he slowly learns of the devastating ecological and cultural consequences his industrial world has had upon the area.

"The Emerald Forest" sometimes comes across as too heavy-handed in its critique of modern society's threat towards the natural world. Yet, despite its labored message, the film's central story of Markham's searching for his son is involving on an emotional and dramatic level. Furthermore, the scenes with the natives are an insightful venture into an unfamiliar way of life that is as compelling as it is informative. Chalk up "The Emerald Forest" as another little nugget from the Eighties.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The Emerald Forest - DVD Version
Review: Powers Boothe plays a construction engineer building a dam in the rainforest where his son is kidnapped by the indigenous people. The movie goes a long way in telling just what a parent would do - not only to find the missing child but also the later sacrifices that will be made.

Gatekeeper reviews are only concerned with adult theses, nudity and violence. There are may great reviews on this movie. Please refer to them for additional information to see if it's worth purchasing. This movie contains adult, teen and preteen nudity (all topless and all of the indigenous population). There is also violence and adult subject matter. However, when all is considered and the theme of what we are doing to our planet would make this movie viewable by the whole family (with parental supervision).



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