Faith, Hope, Love & Stellar Acting

Rating: 8/10 (24 April 2015)

I really enjoyed this movie! And it was good to see a winning entry from Mexico! The actors were all very good, even the big names like Emily Watson and Tom Wilkinson, who downplayed their parts and were real. The young actor who played central character was awesome, and I also loved the actor who played his Dad. And the actor who played the disenfranchised Japanese fellow was central to making the film believable and very moving. The storyline had a fantastical touch, but was thankfully not heavy-handed. Faith, family love and hope were main themes throughout, but never delivered in preachy way. Kudos to the director/writer for creating a strong story, hiring excellent actors, cinematic appeal in terms of locations, and ultimately delivering a movie that was stirring, thought-provoking and entertaining. My husband and I both enjoyed it so much, and we'll take our teen-aged daughter to see it again very soon.