On Wings of Eagles

We had to drive 1.5 hours to see this film, as it was only in one theater in our state. The drive was totally worth it!!! On Wings of Eagles is a very high quality film, with production value, sets, acting, and special effects that could compare to most Hollywood flicks. Joseph Fiennes' performance was very strong and believable. His acting talent carried this film, just as it did in Risen. The story is very moving and inspiring, and is a great sequel to Chariots of Fire. I was very excited to see this on the big screen and hope that many people will be inspired by it. Several scenes with blood give it its' PG-13 rating, but the violence is not disturbing or overly graphic. This is a great film that is worth watching! My rating: Excellent!!!

It is a sketch. Or, maybe, a drawing, but not the expected portrait. The acting is good, the storytelling resonable, the message touching, but something significant is missing. The good point remains the beautiful reflection of the faith of Liddell. Sure, a low budget and a too familiar theme. But the tragedy remains far to the viewer and all is reduced ar sort of resume. So, a decent film about the last part of the life of a champion and beautiful reflection of Christian faith in difficult times.

I bought this movie with great excitement. Having read much on Liddell and sharing his Christian faith I was hopeful of a movie telling of his faith and endurance and life as a missionary in China. Alas this was beyond disappointing. The depiction of Liddell was simply pathetic. His faith was barely mentioned and the accounts of his life in China I have read were not well presented. A better effort by more informed film makers will hopefully be made one day. This was not that movie.

I was excited to find out that Liddell's life post-Olympics had been made into a movie Thinking that his family had found a way to have this part of his life told. But about halfway through the movie I began to wonder how the Chinese had managed to so influence the story and apparently it was just a Chinese-interest story from the start.

Yes, it's pleasant enough to watch, in the same way that Ip Man is pleasant. But you'll find a lot of parallels, and that's not by accident! For those who believe this is the story of Eric Liddell's life, ask yourself how many times "Christ" is mentioned in the film. My wife and I could not remember a single time. Nor was the gospel seen. There were a few bible verses, generally thrown at the Japanese to condemn them. Nothing that I could recall from the New Testament. There is far, far more of Liddell's faith presented in Chariots of Fire, and I expected it to be the other way around.

The movie is fine for all the things that I normally would want to see in a movie. Acting, script, etc., no complaints here.

This film picks up where "Chariots of Fire" (1981) leaves off with the Olympic champion Eric Liddell (Joseph Fiennes) now a missionary in the land of his birth - now war-torn - China. When the Japanese invade, he is initially fêted - well fed and looked after, but that is all part of the ultimate game of humiliation as he is basically being groomed for a race against "Xu Niu" (Shawn Dou). This is quite an interesting depiction of just how this man's Christian faith and sense of decency were pitched against the ruthlessness of his captors who used both physical and psychological methods to reduce their captives to jelly. Whilst this certainly hints at those atrocities, the whole look and feel of the film is just a little sterile and Fiennes isn't really up to much in the lead. Somehow his strength of faith and purpose is lost in a really mediocre production that never quite gets going properly. Based in fact, it does offer us a truth about the truly shameful ending for this man of principle, but perhaps a remake with a better cast, writing and more vision from a director who understands how to better deliver a story of a complex individual would leave us feeling better fulfilled. Watchable, but forgettable I am afraid.