Review of The Children of Huang Shi (2008) by Thomas M — 17 Jun 2008

Ok ok... granted this is a totally classical and heavy handed movie. on the paper you think 'didactic prestiqge hbo project'. spottiswoode... ah ah... he should have been a construction worker more than a director.

BUT ... the story is incredibly generous and human, the cast is astounding, the landscapes are simply gorgeous. so overall the movie is grand and touching and images absolutely require a large screen rather than the tv set or computer.

.. rhys meyers was one whose choices had ended it exhausting me by always being in the 'i'm such a mean pervert' line... here he's a plain and simple human being which turns into a model-role through kindness and compassion.

yeoh and mitchell are great, as well as the kids. AND there's nothing remotely post-colonial in this. finally the end credit sequence is fantastically powerful.