Every once in a while, a movie comes along that you'll just fall in love with despite having never heard of it previously. I discovered this gem of a movie when I was looking for items to add to my online DVD rental list. One viewing later and I loved it, in fact for the whole time I had this DVD (about ten days IIRC) I think I watched it at least half a dozen times.
Set in 1995 in war-torn Bosnia, a man called Sharkey sets out to find a small boy to take out of the country for child trade purposes. This small boy turns out to be Vlado Petric, an orphan of the conflict and with hardened survival instincts. Vlado has a heart of gold, being overly protective towards a member of his gang who is regularly pushed around by the others, but this kid isn't totally selfless, and puts himself forward to go with Sharkey to leave Bosnia but Vlado really wants to go to Norway where the Eskimos live.
The outbound trip is one fraught with peril, realisation and hope. Sharkey is a man on a mission, just doing his job. Vlado is just a boy and his being a boy (by his actions) initially irritates Sharkey but there is a bond forming between the pair. This doesn't stop them having a huge argument though. The scene where Vlado single handily saves Sharkey from being shot dead cements their bond, and is one of the highlights of the movie.
Bob Hoskins stars in this movie, although it's always been kind of hard to take him seriously in any acting role ever after you've seen him in Super Mario Brothers in a plumber's outfit. Don't even go there. Hoskins acts very well here, a good solid performance.
Sergiusz Zymelka steals the entire show for me. A great little Polish child actor who's capable of handling anything that this movie can throw at him and a lot more to boot. The performance is virtually flawless from Sergiusz but then the role demands it really. Nevertheless, he can act Bob Hoskins off the screen any day (a feat which isn't really all that difficult IMO).
In short - great movie, worth watching, great acting, good solid drama with a spot of action and a sense of "all will be right with the world one day" about it.
Set in 1995 in war-torn Bosnia, a man called Sharkey sets out to find a small boy to take out of the country for child trade purposes. This small boy turns out to be Vlado Petric, an orphan of the conflict and with hardened survival instincts. Vlado has a heart of gold, being overly protective towards a member of his gang who is regularly pushed around by the others, but this kid isn't totally selfless, and puts himself forward to go with Sharkey to leave Bosnia but Vlado really wants to go to Norway where the Eskimos live.
The outbound trip is one fraught with peril, realisation and hope. Sharkey is a man on a mission, just doing his job. Vlado is just a boy and his being a boy (by his actions) initially irritates Sharkey but there is a bond forming between the pair. This doesn't stop them having a huge argument though. The scene where Vlado single handily saves Sharkey from being shot dead cements their bond, and is one of the highlights of the movie.
Bob Hoskins stars in this movie, although it's always been kind of hard to take him seriously in any acting role ever after you've seen him in Super Mario Brothers in a plumber's outfit. Don't even go there. Hoskins acts very well here, a good solid performance.
Sergiusz Zymelka steals the entire show for me. A great little Polish child actor who's capable of handling anything that this movie can throw at him and a lot more to boot. The performance is virtually flawless from Sergiusz but then the role demands it really. Nevertheless, he can act Bob Hoskins off the screen any day (a feat which isn't really all that difficult IMO).
In short - great movie, worth watching, great acting, good solid drama with a spot of action and a sense of "all will be right with the world one day" about it.