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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

Beautiful Country, The

EMAILPRINTSony Pictures Classics

Beautiful Country, The reviews
64
8.3 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 23 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 11 votes
Read user comments
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Movie Info

Genre(s): Drama  |  Foreign

Written by: Sabina Murray (also story)
Lingard Jervey (story)

Directed by: Hans Petter Moland

Release Date:
Theatrical: July 8, 2005
DVD: December 13, 2005

Running Time: 137 minutes, Color

Origin: USA / Norway

Summary

RATING: R for some language and a crude sexual reference

Starring Bai Ling, Nick Nolte, Tim Roth, John Hussey, Temuera Morrison, Arthur J. Nascarella, and Damien Nguyen

Bui doi - "less than dust" - is a slur aimed at Vietnamese children with American fathers. This film, set in 1990, relates the odyssey of a young "bui doi" as he escapes Vietnam, endures refugee camp, and survives a brutal ocean crossing and indentured servitude with a human-trafficking ring. Nevertheless, he manages to keep hope, humanity, and a generous spirit alive as he searches for connection with his long-lost family. (Sony Pictures Classics)

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

80

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

The film achieves its power through a careful gathering of crucial details, in wordless glances, cruelties of nature and of man and the relentless determination to gain the promised land.

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80

Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas

It is a straightforward, conventional narrative, charting seemingly endless cruelty and hardship, but rewards the patient with an eloquent climactic sequence that is impossible to predict.

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80

TV Guide Ken Fox

Versatile, highly skilled Norwegian director Hans Petter Moland's poignant drama examines the lingering effects of U.S. intervention in Southeast Asia.

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80

Dallas Observer Bill Gallo

Generous in spirit and fearlessly observant, this tale of an outcast Vietnamese man's journey to freedom deserves a place of honor among the great films portraying emigrant tenacity.

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80

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

The script, by newcomer Sabina Murray, is occasionally cloying as the naive hero falls for a bitter prostitute (Bai Ling), but its epic tale of two cultures tragically entwined is anchored by deep and elemental emotions.

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75

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

In the end, it's a heartening, rewarding experience to watch this journey--and, especially, its end.

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75

New York Post Kyle Smith

The movie grows steadily more arresting as it goes on and saves its best parts for last.

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75

Boston Globe Ty Burr

The filmmakers bank against their impulse toward melodrama and deliver a reconciliation that is heartbreakingly understated.

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75

San Francisco Examiner Walter Addiego

Quiet, moving and beautifully shot.

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75

USA Today Claudia Puig

The Beautiful Country might be too slow-moving for some, but it has powerful performances and a multi-layered quality. It is an epic journey worth taking.

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75

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

Inside the Norwegian director's glove of empathy is a fist of unappeasable anger.

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75

Portland Oregonian M. E. Russell

One of those hard-to-pin-down movies where you're not quite sure which sort of story the filmmakers wanted to tell.

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75

Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach

The Beautiful Country is not a happy film by any means, but it does offer a fragile hope, that beauty exists at the end of every journey, if only one has the strength to finish the trip.

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70

The New York Times Dana Stevens

It is hard not to admire the independence and ambition of The Beautiful Country, even if the film does fall short of its epic intentions.

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70

Variety Derek Elley

Standout performance is by Nolte who, in the final 20 minutes, draws on a deep reservoir of playing broken romantic heroes to portray Binh's father. The subtle, resonant scenes between the two men are worth the price of admission.

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63

New York Daily News Jami Bernard

Bai Ling plays a resourceful prostitute from a Malaysian refugee camp who grows harder and more alienated by the day. Nick Nolte, Tim Roth and Temuera Morrison offer strong supporting performances.

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63

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

Loses itself in melodrama, caricature and narrative missteps.

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63

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Jason Anderson

With its visual splendour, The Beautiful Country is indeed lovely to behold, but its story of human misery and survival doesn't always benefit from the painstaking art direction, picturesque vistas and surges of dramatic music.

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60

The Onion (A.V. Club) Tasha Robinson

A gorgeous film, framed with an eye that makes every country seem beautiful in one way or another. It's probably fitting that the human element seems fragile and flat by comparison, but the contrast leaves Beautiful Country fairly bland.

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58

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Bill White

The Beautiful Country has an epic bearing, but a trite and troubled script makes it more a visual tirade than an engaging odyssey.

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50

Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten

Provides a panorama without insight.

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50

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

The subject is compelling but the story is very, very slow.

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30

Washington Post Desson Thomson

Feels like a manufactured Asian "Chocolat," which drives the label 'art house movie' even further into mainstream banality.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 8.3 (out of 10) based on 11 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Robert gave it a7:
Lovely, surprising film that carries emotional weight through a young man's wide-ranging search for his father. underrated by many, worth watching.

Bob gave it a10:
Within 5 minutes you could tell this was not an American made movie - too subtle and too intelligent for the mass audiences. I was surprised to find it was of Norwegian origin, though.

Ray S. gave it a10:
The cadence of the film is deliberately slow, but it works to draw the viewer into the story, and to the ending, which is poignant and understated--and rings true emotionally.

Barbara C. gave it a10:
THIS IS an awesome movie. If you are interested in Vietnam or not..it is about hope ...go see it! The characters were gripping and the story so moving. I wish more movies like this were being made!

Doug gave it a9:
A very memorable film. Great cinematography, fascinating, well told story. Even though it's a long film, it holds your interest throughout.

Gal gave it a10:
Great cinematography...excellent script...very realistic story about the tragedy of Vietnam..incredibly sensitive portrait.

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