Far and Away

source: Far and Away

Moviecut—Far and Away

I loved the movie up to the very end. It's full of romance and suspense but the end really let me down. It was so stupid and cheesy. I mean, come on, let the man die or don't have him die at all, but to bring him back to life. And then after he comes back to life (after this fatal wound) he jumps right up, kisses Nicole, and together they plant their little flag in the ground. ARG It was so upsetting that I could not sleep. Could they not make up their mind on how to end it? Where they arguing about it and then decided to put them both in? I would really love to know the logic behind the ending. Everything other than that was just wonderful about the movie, but they totally ruined it in the last minutes...and those are the most important.

Far and Away is definitely one of my favourite films. The acting and the scenery were both superb and I absolutely loved the story. Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise were both brilliant in their roles and the romance between Shannon and Joseph was very believable (most likely due to the fact that they were married anyway!). Nicole gave a superb performance as Shannon, the scenes in which she is acting the innocent, but rebellious and naive young girl were brilliant. And Tom was superb as the poor but ambitious Joseph. A truly brilliant film which deserves to be on the big screen, I hope to be able to see it at the cinemas one day!

This film is beautiful. It's wonderful to see Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman in a good film. The movie has a pretty good historical point of view so the plot is kind of self telling. The scenery in this is great. And, it's fun to see Tom fight, and Nicole wash clothes. Oh, for the fight scenes nothing gory. For parents: this movie shouldn't be shown to really little kids. For teens it's cute. And, adults well take a crack at it. Oh by the way, a little bit of nudity, but nothing bad. Just trust me. It's a very well done and beautiful film. 9/10 stars.

Set In Rural Ireland in the 19th Century, Young Irishman Joseph Donelly (Cruise) is facing eviction from his land after the death of his father. While seeking revenge on their rich protestant landlord, he meets the spoilt and rebellious daughter Shannon Christy (Kidman) and ends up tagging along when she runs away to 'modern' America. Misfortune leads them both to a poor part of Boston and they both dream of someday owning their own land, separately of course as each denies their obvious attraction to the other. Blatantly obvious continuity errors make this 'film' look like a home movie shot by children and edited by a monkey. As someone who is Irish, the accents by both the leads were unbearable and over the top, as well as several occasions when Tom's American accent emerges. The acting was overly bad, the characters completely uninteresting, the storyline long-winded and predictable, and the script thoroughly stupid. Stupid is the word I would use to describe this movie, as everything from the plot, to the editing was utterly stupid. I'd hate to see what a historian of this time period would think of this film, as it doesn't seem to be researched at all. According to the goofs on IMDb, American flags used in the movie had 50 stars, when at the time the official flag had only 44. But, because movies are essentially to entertain, not to be analysed, I gave this movie two stars more than it deserves because it does to a certain point, entertain. But more so from parts like when Kidman falls into the mud and comes out sparkling clean a moment later, than the parts of the movie that are meant to be entertaining.

This film is a wonderful tale of hope, failure and fulfillment. Unpopular with critics and snobs, it captures history in a rare and rewarding way, that recognizes the trials and travails of the Irish. The Gaels like so many other displaced ethnicities realized their full potential in America. Most films never develop an audience, and even fewer develop one that transcends generations. `Far and Away' appeals to adults and young people, so much so, that it has recently been re-released in DVD format. It has also established a niche in television rebroadcasts. These annuals rebroadcasts put the lie to the "wisdom" of the critics, and prove the films natural popularity with movie-lovers.

I thought this movie was very well done. It is an overlooked treasure. Ron Howard is a great film maker and he deserves more credit for this film. I'm a huge Ron Howard fan and I felt that this film was no better than any of his work done thus far. The dialog was a bit hard to understand, but the plot, acting and directing are what make the movie so great. Nicole Kidman is so beautiful in the movie and she really carries the movie with her charisma. Tom Cruise plays his part very well. The scenery in the movie is some of the best I've ever seen. It is easy to lose yourself in this movie. I would recommend this movie to anyone I know.

A truly brilliant film, this is Ron Howard's masterpiece. I never tire of viewing Far and Away, and enjoy every moment each time I see it. This film is admirable in several respects: 1)it shows how a romance can develop over time, without the typical Hollywood touches of "whirlwind" happenings and people hopping in the sack after only a couple of days (a la "Titanic"), 2)Ron Howard captured the beauty of Ireland, the filth of a large city, and the expanse of the open prairie by resurrecting 70mm film - the colors in this film are absolutely incredible, 3)a simple, character-driven story is enhanced by the historical backdrop. In fact, there are many similarities between the romance in "Titanic" and in "Far and Away." I feel that the depiction in this film works much better than the other, mainly because of the plausibility factor (how many times would you run into the same person on a huge ship?). We understand why Shannon would want to take Joseph along with her. This is the opportunity she's been waiting for. Along the way, and through helping each other through tough circumstances, they fall for each other. This is not some momentary crush that will pass when the next good looking person walks by, we know that these two truly care for each other, and admire each other. Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman are perfect - one would think that they're both Irish natives. If their marriage is anything like their relationship here, it is bound to last for some time. This is, hands down, Tom Cruise's best movie ever. Here we don't see the typical cocky young man, but instead, a man driven by passion and destiny to do what needs to be done. This is probably much closer to the real Tom Cruise: Proud, without being arrogant. This film remains on my list of all-time favorites, and I look forward to seeing it on the large screen one day.

This is a fairly long movie but one that keeps your interest - at least it did mine - all the way with an epic-type adventure tale of Irish immigrants back in the 1880s in the U.S. This movie is broken down into three distinct parts: 1 - Ireland (40 minutes, featuring some stunning scenery and good Irish music); 2 - Boston (one hour, featuring many brutal scenes of tough Irish immigrants and bare-knuckle fights); 3 - Oklahoma (the days on mining and the famous "land rush.") The story is very intense and involving. One well-known critic called it "old-fashioned" and meant it as an insult. Well, I think the opposite. I agree that it's old-fashioned, in that it's epic storytelling and that's a good thing. It features solid acting by Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman and all the others, and Kidman isn't the only attractive thing in there. The photography is magnificent. I only wish the sound was better as there is almost nothing from the rear speakers. Cruise is very convincing as a good man, so much so I hated to see some of those beatings he took in the Boston segment. Then again, I'm old-fashioned: I don't like to see the bad guys win over the good guys. Overall, a memorable movie and one that you truly will care about the characters and the final outcome.