The true story of the 19th century Belgian priest, Father Damien, who volunteered to go to the island of Molokai, to console and care for the lepers.
Similar titles
Reviews
Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!
Absolutely Fantastic
By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
One of the most inspiring movies I have ever seen in my life. The story follows a priest who decides to set up a service and care for a colony of Lepers on the Island of Molokai in Hawaii. He cares not for his own well being, but only for others as taught by him through his religion of Christianity. He openly interacts, touches and blesses the Lepers and regards them as people, unlike many others who forced them to go to this island. He also has hopes for a better future and more care for the people as he constantly tries to the government of the Island and the Church about getting more supplies and care for these people and he is eventually successful. He chose to think and care for others more than for himself, especially remarkable because the people were all rotting, dieing Lepers.His actions made him pay the ultimate price as he eventually caught leprosy and soon over time began to feel the effects of it. Though he had the disease, he continued to help and care for the Lepers and lead out his services at the colony. His actions can be compared to those of almost the likes of Mother Teresa. Leprosy soon cost him his life but even though he was dieing he still spent time helping and caring for others who needed help more than he did. This film helps to show Father Damien's strong devotion to God and his selfless actions he learned from the teachings of Jesus and his priesthood. Father Damien cast away his life, family and friends to go on this mission. This is truly a story about a hero who few have heard of before.
This story is quite faithful to the facts of the life of this remarkable Belgian priest who chose to live in a leper colony while still a man in his early 30's even though he knew it to be a permanent assignment and a death sentence.The horrors of the leper colony were conveyed realistically while still giving a focus that would allow all but very young audiences to view it. The bureaucrats, both civil and religious, are well portrayed. -- (Derek Jacobi gives his usual fine performance in one of these roles.)This is a "must see" for anyone who has never heard the story of Father Damien or knows little about the leper colony on Molokai.
The new year/ century/ millennium is still very young, and already I've seen one of the worst movies of the new era! This movie really is a mess! As I understand by the opening credits it's a typical "Europudding", a term my great hero Barry Norman of BBC's film magazine always used for films that were financed with funds of different European countries, and with a lot of different actors from these countries acting together. Usually these films result in an incomprehensible mess of cultural differences, vague stories and the lot. So does this film! I hope and expect that someone somewhere had good intentions when writing and conceiving this film, but then somewhere everything went terribly wrong. The funders should ask their money back! Despite the beautifully shot pictures of Hawaii, the movie is a disaster: the story is un- involving and very moralistic, the acting is very poor and characters are flat and predictable. The music is much too loud constantly. I hope ( and maybe even predict) that this one "goes straight to video", and then is forgotten in some quiet little corner. ( I voted a simple 1!)
The fact that this movie was primarily filmed in Kalaupapa on the north shore of our island, does not unduly influence my judgment that this is a very interesting movie. The acting of the "international" cast is quite fine. But so is that of my childhood friend, Keanu Kapuni-Szasz, as a young girl who contracts leprosy and later presents a slight temptation to Father Damien. Many, many "topside" Molokai residents joined with the few remaining Kalaupapa residents (who have Hansen's Disease) in this production. Viewers will be inspired by their beauty and spirit. Aloha.