david.clarke

I have just sat up until 1.30 am to watch this film and enjoyed every minute of it. I have not enjoyed so much a late-night movie that has been new to me for ages.And to think I was going to avoid this, due to bad reviews. Jake Gyllenhaal is brilliant as the naive and frustrated lad discovering himself and the world out there. It is a story for everyone. Soosie Kwirtz ( sorry if I misspelled that) is great as the mad possessive mother and a wonderful character-full cast with weird and wacky but quite believable crazy happenings. The dad is wonderfully underplayed. I just feel so glad I saw this, and will enjoy watching it again. I love movies true to their purpose (All About Eve , Grapes of Wrath etc) This is not in their league as a great movie but it's heart and soul is in the film as much as any other great movie. This could so be a cult film.

Looked at this on TV as just another western but found myself admiring the camera-work, scenery and performances. Though the direction was at times unexciting, the story was well told and dignified by a good performance by Wagner, so very handsome that it is no wonder the young squaw wants her first kiss with him. Jeffery Hunter, so overlooked but always worth watching, looking incredibly fit (sad to think he died just 4 years later) gave a very strong performance as the head-strong son of the chief, (reminds me of Sal Mineo in Cheyenne Autumn (same story?)) who rides around with Hugh O Brian (Wyatt Earp as an native American!). at the end the scenes between Wagner and Hunter are poignant and stay with you. The sad face of the chief says it all. The film was just a bit overlong and drags in parts which meant I missed bits that I should not have done, but there are some magnificent scenery and cavalry and Indian charges.

as a youngster this was an awe inspiring tale of bravery and of a life devoted to care of others, and every year it was a much watched movie. Now I know that Gladys Aylward was not a tall swedish woman, but a short English woman, it still does not take away any of Ingrid's heartfelt sincere performance. The locations are amazing, looking more like China than China, (it's Wales), and the photography brilliant. Robert Donat's performance will always be a touching farewell and for me gives the film a genuine touch of reality, portraying a noble man near the end of his life who is doing his part to help change things for the better with Gladys' help of course.

The romance between Jurgens (not a eurasian as portrayed but a chinaman in real life) and Bergman does irritate now that I know it did not occur, but the rest of the film is pretty true, though I gather Gladys was as awkward and stubborn as only a missionary can be, and Jeannie Lawson (Athene Seyler) was a really difficult person. As much as I love Ingrid, this really was her playing herself, rather than the zealous missionary of the biographies.