Good movie but grossly overrated

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

It is not only a funny movie, but it allows a great amount of joy for anyone who watches it.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I hadn't been back to this site since I posted my original comment, which was a while ago. Now I return and find my post has been removed and IMDb didn't even bother to notify me.No doubt my comment was "flagged" as "inappropriate" or somesuch. If so, then what nonsense. It's clear that the pompous people using terms such as "narrow-minded" and "bigoted" are afflicted with these traits themselves. It seems that an already near-complete monopoly of the old media by the political "left" is not enough, they have to censor the internet as well.No matter. I'm experience with left-wing hypocrisy and the fact that they are guilty of what they accuse; also that they don't have the self-awareness to realise this about themselves - or perhaps they're just arrogant.If my initial comment on this film was removed due to anyone labelling it "racist" than that's not only pathetic but the opposite of the truth - my comments were ANTI-racist as I was criticising the constant depiction of white people and only white people as "evil racists". It's racial stigmatisation. Are the worlds' white peoples supposed to meekly accept being constantly singled out for demonisation by Big Media? Apparently so.On a final note, the left's media monopoly and active censorship is not only hypocrisy but an admission of failure. Failure to hold audience interest by merit and an admission that the (potential and suppressed) competition is better.0/1? I bet the user who did that is the one who reported my initial comment and it didn't take me long to work out the why and who. All I'll say at this juncture is that is typical of your kind. How the world was conned by the left's "free speech/expression" stance in the 1960's. Now they are in charge and applying the very thing they feigned to protest against.

The Wiseman family, a Polish couple and their two children, have been living quietly in East London. The Wisemans are Holocaust survivors. Their working class neighborhood tolerated this Jewish family even though it's clear they don't like them. As the house next door to the Wisemans becomes empty, a new immigrant family arrives. The only trouble is they are Jamaicans and black, so the neighbors concentrate in the new arrivals and they even try to enlist Ruth Wiseman into their ranks in hating the Samuels family.At the center of the story is a sweet boy, David Wiseman, who loves cricket. He is a lousy player. Imagine young David's surprise when the next door neighbors put up a netting in their backyard so Dennis, the patriarch, can teach his young daughter, Judy, in how to play the sport. It doesn't take long for David to try to get on the Dennis' good graces because he sees in him the man that can teach him how to be a good player. By sheer persistence, David becomes a good player and begins to gain acceptance among his peers in school as he makes the cricket team.At the same time, Ruth, who is much younger than her husband, sees also in Dennis a man that is completely different from her own husband. One thing lead to another, and it doesn't take long for Ruth to try to insinuate herself to Dennis, something that he discourages her from doing. David, who has made a good friend in Judy Samuels, has to choose between his newly found school friends and the girl next door on his birthday celebration.A few of the tough youths in the area decide to take a stand and scare the Samuels from leaving their neighborhood. One night David wakes up and watches in horror as his neighbors' house begins to burn. He is instrumental in alerting the Samuels who are the victims of a hate crime just because the color of their skin.Paul Morrison, the writer and director of "Wondrous Oblivion", shows a good understanding for the subject of his film. Mr. Morrison doesn't take sides, he just presents the story that feels real and a situation that could have been plausible. Where he has succeeded is in bringing to life characters that feel as though we might have known them. The director also captures that era in London.Delroy Lindo, a distinguished actor of stage and screen, makes a great impression with his Dennis. Equally sensational is Emily Woof, who as Ruth Wiseman, has the one of the best roles in the film. Ruth, who sees in Dennis all what her man isn't, is naturally attracted to the happy-go-lucky Dennis. Their scenes together at the dance hall and later when she tells him about loving him. Young Sam Smith, who plays David, contributes to enhance the film with his earnest take on the young boy. Leonie Elliott plays Judy Samuels and Stanley Townsend is seen as the elder Wiseman."Wondrous Oblivion" shows an excellent director, Paul Morrison, who is one of the best new talent coming from England.

Wondrous Oblivion, United Kingdom-Germany, 2003, d. Paul Morrison, 106 m. "Heartwarming" is perhaps overused in describing films, but it's certainly apt in this case. In 1960's England an unathletic young boy and his family bond with a Jamaican family which has moved into the neighborhood and built a cricket court in their backyard. Many of the neighbors are horrified at this infiltration of their turf by a Black family, but young David seizes the opportunity to learn cricket skills from the skilled Dennis. As the bond between the two families grows, so do the problems. The ending may surprise you. Think of "Wondrous Oblivion" as this year's "Bend It Like Beckham." Though the film is sometimes strident in expressing its anti-racism theme, still the best word to describe it is, yep, heartwarming.—Nick Salerno.

This is one of the best films about the immigrant experience in the UK that I've seen in a while.It starts off appearing to be about a very English-looking German Jewish boy who's family are ultra-assimilationist and who wants nothing more than to succeed at the most English of sports, Cricket.As it unfolds it takes in the experiences of some of the first West Indians to come to England, and are much more talented at cricket but doomed to suffer the depradations of little Englanders by virtue of their high melanin levels.The complex racial issues that ensue are handled in a way that's sensitive and believable, as long as you can believe that the young jewish boy really is jewish, and not the scion of some old anglo-Norman family. The period detail is pretty spot on as well, though the use of colourised pathe footage slightly jars with the overall aesthetic of the film.Mercifully, you don't have to be able to understand cricket to get this film, just appreciate how difficult it can be to live in a strange country