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Summary: LOVE this movie!
Review: What would you do if you were 18 years old, in a prison in a foreign country, where you do not speak the language, for something you didn't do?This movie is fantastic in filming, acting and plot. The characters portrayed are in a horrid situation, and have to answer the question: 'When you are treated like an animal, what do you become?' I highly suggest this movie to any that prefer a plot driven movie.
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Summary: Fascinating and realistic
Review: Their trip to Bangkok was supposed to be a blast for Alice (Danes) and Darlene (Beckinsale). After having met handsome Australian, everything goes wrong. Nick uses the two girls to smuggle drugs to Hong Kong. Still at the airport, Alice & Darlene are arrested and sentenced to 33 years in a womens' jail. The two friends' last chance is the American lawyer Hank Greene (Pullman).Together with his Thai wife he tries to get the girls out of jail, what turns out to be close to impossible. When the situation seems to be hopeless, Alice shows how much Darlene means to her...
I was fascinated by Jonathan Kaplan's movie. It's realistic, quiet, emphatic and very well acted. Most of all, Claire Danes is really, really great. All in all, "Brokedown Palace" is a movie, which is worth watching.
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Summary: very good movie
Review: .
I must point out that this movie had an Excellent Soundtrack. also, although Nick Parks organized the setup, I don't think that it was he who actually Placed the drugs in their backpack, because if the drugs were in the bag at the time that they were prepairing to leave the hotel, I think they would have noticed. However, I Never trusted the suspicious luggage carrier at the hotel, who Was the last one to handle the backpack before they arrived at the airport (he placed it in the trunk of the cab). I personally believe he was working for Nick Parks. overall, a great movie, great soundtrack, and an emotionally touching end.
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Summary: Don't let this happen to you
Review: The story of friendship tested is interesting, the characters are engaging, the sets are beautiful, the acting is good to excellent, but somehow this tale of two American girls unjustly jailed for drug tracking in Thailand doesn't quite convince. It's hard to say just what director Jonathan Kaplan might have done differently to make this promising movie an outstanding movie. But maybe it has something to do with the wrong kind of detail, the accumulated effects thereof. First we have the sight of the pretty American girls, just out of high school, Alice Marano (Claire Danes) and Darlene Davis (Kate Beckinsale) dressed in USA young miss outfits that show off their figures like models on a runway. You'd think they would dress down a little for the natives, remembering that when in Rome do as the Romans do. I've watched the Globe Trekker on PBS and the young women there never wear tight skirts and lipstick. The girls prance about the streets of Thailand on display as though looking for Mr. Right. Well, of course this being the nineties and not the fifties, they instead find Mr. Wrong. He charms them and divides them by invoking jealousy, the one of the other. All of this makes for an interesting premise. And then we have a nice (if predictable) twist, and the girls end up in prison. The prison sets are beautiful in a dark and somber way, full of open spaces and diffused colors, guards in pressed uniforms, the other prisoners mostly healthy--pretty even--in clean uniforms with neat tags like charms hanging from the necks. The fruits and vegetables stacked in the corner of the mess area that the girls are tricked into sampling are fresh and attractive. Strange. A palace as a prison. Somehow--perhaps it was the beauty of the sets--I never really felt the kind of outrage and horror and near hopelessness that such a situation might evoke. It seemed clear that everything would work out, and the girls would go home soon, leaving the misadventure behind them. That is not exactly what happens. See this for Claire Danes who gives a fine performance and almost sells the not-entirely plausible ending.
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Summary: A LESSON TO REMEMBER...
Review: This is the story of two girls, Alice Marano (Claire Danes) and Darlene Davis (Kate Beckinsale), who are best friends. Alice is from a blue collar background, while Darlene's family is white collar. They have just graduated from high school and are supposed to be going on a trip to Hawaii to celebrate, except that Alice convinces Darlene that they should, instead, go a more exotic locattion. So, while telling their parents they are off to Hawaii, they end up going to Thailand, where they flop in a six dollar a night fleabag hotel, replete with roaches the size of potatoes. They hook up with a handsome, young Australian named Nick Parks (Daniel Lapaine), who engages their confidence and with whom they briefly end up hanging out. Alice and Darlene find themselves competing for his interest. He then invites them to accompany him for a weekend in Hong Kong and, ultimately, both agree. While at the airport to board their flight to Hong Kong, they suddenly discover themselves under arrest, as one of their backpacks is found to contain a large cache of drugs, much to their collective surprise. The girls then begin a journey through the Tibetan criminal justice system, which appears to be a corrupt one and especially harsh on the drug trafficking of which they are accused. Alice, the more savvy one, declines to sign anything, while Darlene, the more naive of the two, signs a statement written in Thai that she believes to be a transcript of her own words, only later to find that she has signed a complete confession. Even after obtaining legal representation from an expatriate attorney named Yankee Hank Green (Bill Pullman), they still end up being sentenced to a very long prison term. This is where the movie really starts focusing on what it is really all about, their friendship. Excellent performances are given by Claire Danes and Kate Beckinsale, as well as Bill Pullman. While Claire Danes give her somewhat hard edged character a certain vulnerability, somehow the viewer knows that she could probably do the time to which she is sentenced while standing on her head. Kate Beckinsale imbues her her character with a fragility that lets the viewer know that if she stays in that Tibeetan prison for very long, she will be a goner. While the ending comes as somewhat of a surprise, it is somehow fitting. Yet, at the same time it is puzzling, as it is almost as if there were an atonement involved, but the viewer is left guessing as for what. The film is a compelling one, but in the final analysis falls somewhat short of its mark, with questions unanswered and motives left open to speculation. Still, the film manages to entertain, notwithstanding these shortcomings.
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Summary: A Tale of Friendship
Review: Dismissed by some as lightweight because they felt the Thailand prison scenes were not brutal enough this is actually a terrific film about the complex friendshp of two girls and a sacrifice made by one to save the other. Claire Danes gives a great performance as the girl most likely to get into trouble and Kate Beckinsale shines as the good girl who sees more in her friend than her parents do, especially her father. After graduating high school they cook up a scheme to visit exotic Thailand on the cheap and do something special, telling Beckinsale's parents they are off to Hawaii. They meet Aussie Daniel Lapaine and he charms both girls into going to Hong Kong with them to continue their adventure. Jealousy plays a part as it is unclear at first which one he likes the best. But all is not as it seems and he disappears just as heroin is found by customs in their backpack. What follows as they are imprisoned in Thailand with seemingly no way out as each begins to question their friendship and wonder if maybe, just maybe, the other one knew about the heroin is compelling. Of course Beckinsale's father comes to Thailand and blames Danes for getting his daughter into this mess. Danes does a good job at conveying the hurt she is trying not to show for the faith no one has ever shown in her, except for her friend Beckinsale. Bill Pullman gives a solid performance as a slightly opportunistic and sleazy lawyer in Thailand who may be able to help them get out, for a price. Adding to the atmosphere is a soundtrack just as exotic as the locale. Everything from Delerium's "Silence" and a remake of "Rock the Casbah" to the beautiful voice of Sarah Brightman on "Deliverance" set a unique mood for a good film. Everything does not go as planned in their quest to prove their innocence and be released, but one of them may have a way out. I will not say who or what exactly transpires if you have not seen this exceptional film. I will say that their frienship is cemented forever, by a great sacrifice, and a lie. This is an entertaining and thought provoking meditation on friendship and loyalty. Beckinsale, and especially Danes, really sparkle in an unusual film you won't want to miss. Pick this one up. It's a nice suprise.
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Summary: Examination of friendship not foreign imprisonment
Review: 1) This is not a movie about the horrors of being in a foreign prison. 2) This is not about the mystery of who put the drugs in their backpack. It is a part of the movie but is meant to be pretty obvious it was the Nick Parks character. It was more about their suspicions about each other. A lot of the criticism of this film is that the prison is not so terrible and the mystery about who put the drugs in the backpack was not compelling. OF COURSE NOT, That is not what the movie was about. That is like criticizing that "Scarface" wasn't a great tale of adventures at sea because he came over on a boat. This movie is about 2 friends. One is considered the troublemaker who carelessly causes problems for the other. The other is considered more stable. They find themselves in a hopeless situation. (Not one where they are beaten and tortured, which would have not been good for the movie!) In the end, the friend who is considered the selfish troublemaker turns out to be the one who makes a very intense self-less sacrifice for the benefit of the other. That is what the movie is about. If you don't judge it on that, then you are not judging it on what it is intended to be. This is a great movie. Almost all the characters were exceptionally acted. Characters were not given more attention than due and all scenes added a lot of emotion to the situations. The 2 fathers were fabulously acted. One who sits by idlely feeling he has no power. The other travels to Thailand and gives a great performance laying a guilt trip on his daughter's friend accusing her of the situation. Bill Pullman (who I don't usually consider a good actor) surprisingly perfectly portrays their lawyer who is more selfishly concerned with his payment and going on to something else when he doubts their story. But becomes more concerned with them when he uncovers more information believing they are innocent. This character realistically had a lot of dimension whose behavior shifts based on the facts of situation. He has a great chemistry with his wife who is more stable and diligent in uncovering the facts. She is less selfish and concerned with their payment. When Hank Green (Bill Pullman's lawyer character) has already made his assessments and gives little attention and technically has abandoned the case, his wife brings more information to him which changes his premature assessment. Nothing is overdramatized. The drama is built naturally and realistically, which makes this a better film than others. I haven't really covered that much about the film except to counter what I feel are the false criticism's of the film. This is one of my all time favorite movies. If you are interested in the topic IT INTENDS TO EXAMINE, it does that exceptionally and is a great movie.
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Summary: harrowing tale of a vacation gone bad!!!
Review: Alice and Darlene decide to go to Thailand right after senior year as one last "wild adventure". They tell their folks they are in Hawaii and start bumming drinks etc at a posh hotel while living in a dive. They encounter a charming guy who invites them to go to Hong Kong. At the airport, he is nowhere to be found before a SWAT team arrests them for drug trafficking. Alice and Darlene now find themselves in jail for 33 years. A legal team of an American man and his wife take on the girls' case but it is arduous. Funny how the jail seems more like a sorority house. And it is painful how dumb the girls are -- why would you sign a confession written in Thai when you can't read it????? That's how this whole mess starts! Still, it is beautifully filmed (although in the Philippines, not Thailand) and an intriguing tale. Danes and Beckinsale are really talented actresses. And it makes you think twice about talking to strangers when you travel!!
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Summary: Photography, songs highlight contrived melodrama
Review: "Brokedown Palace" is a movie which will probably appeal more to women than to men, as is explores the mysterious world [to men] of female friendship. While it tries hard to be meaningful, it's no "Thelma and Louise" in either the dramatic or comedic sense. Claire Danes and Kate Beckinsdale are Alice and Darlene, two girls who have been best friends all their lives. As a present to themselves, they have planned a vacation together to celebrate their high school graduation. Alice, the more outgoing of the pair, convinces Darlene that this should be a trip they will never forget. She decides that Thailand is a country exotic enough to fill the bill. With some trepidation, Darlene, prodded by Alice, persuades her parents to let her go by insisting the pair is going to Hawaii. Once in Thailand, the girls settle in and start having a good time. Before long, however, they are involved in an incident that lands them in jail. Things go from bad to worse as they become trapped in Thailand's convoluted legal system. Danes and Beckinsdale are convincing as two naive Americans who get in way over their heads. They convey the terror and confusion that arises then anyone is charged with a serious crime in a foreign land. As Hank and Yon Greene, Bill Pullman and Jaqui Kim are adequate in their fairly small roles as the girls' attorneys. There is a lot of high drama in "Brokedown Palace," There are also some fundamental script problems. I can't say much about them without spoiling the plot. Basically, much of the drama is forced, causing an "I'm so sure" reaction on the part of the viewer. The girls' parents, for example are even more distant emotionally than they are physically. Their reactions cause Darlene and Alice to get deeper into trouble, but it all seems contrived because the parents' behavior is so odd. Added together, these contrivances cause the movie's dark but noble conclusion to lack the impact it could have had. This is unfortunate, because the film's basic question is an important one. Just how far are you willing to go to save your best friend? The photography is excellent. The Philippines are where the film was shot, but I doubt most of us can tell the difference. There are some splendid songs in "Brokedown Palace," although most of them have precious little to do with the story.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome
Review: This is one of my favorite movies. It involves a story line very similar to that of "Return to Paradise" with Anne Heche but a must quicker moving movie.
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