A good one -- worth another look

Rating: 7/10 (12 August 2007)

I missed this film the fist time around and saw it for the first time last night on DVD. I was pleasantly surprised. It seemed to me that some extraordinary effort went into creating an accurate portrayal of the forbidden city of Lhasa, and the lives and culture of the Tibetans who are at the core of the movie.
On the acting side, Brad Pitt was not quite totally believable as a German but, accent-quibbles aside, he did inhabit the character in a way that was compelling and interesting. I thought the supporting cast of Mako and (mostly) Tibetan unknowns was good and the use of these unknowns added credibility to the movie.
The scenery was as beautiful as you would expect it to be -- breathtaking shots of the Himalayas dominating throughout much of the movie.