Excruciating, but so much potential

Rating: 5/10 (30 June 2017)

For the first half of this movie, I grit my teeth. Between Charlie Hunnam's off-key acting (not dissimilar to his other recent King Arthur block buster) and Sienna Miller's terrible lines and lackluster delivery (oh, why must men make me wear fashionable clothing... really? Just like high heels today Sienna! It's men who make women do it. As an actress, Miller should have rejected this line as ridiculous rather than using it to promote propaganda).
This movie was ham-fisted. The director tried to push far too much misguided politics hoping to appeal to the lowest common denominator. He tried to revise history (like a waltz 1/2 a step out of sync). The actors didn't have the chops to pull this off. Even the natives came across as simpletons far too frequently. To top off the clichés, Hunnam talks to a mystic woman, who talks about his desires and dreams. I left teeth marks in my knuckles, trying to dull the pain of the acting (and yes, I really do bite myself when seeing ham-fisted movies that have potential).
Despite my criticisms, there were some scenes that felt genuine and exciting. Many of the river scenes felt realistic (and I later found they were shot in remote areas). Also, the scenes between Charlie Hunnam and Tom Holland (Percival and Jack) actually felt quite natural when they were exploring together (and ONLY when they were exploring).
If anybody stole the movie, it was Robert Pattinson as Henry Costin. He was charming, funny and added the only authentic heart to this story. It was also a treat to See Ian McDiarmid (the the Emperor Palpatine fame from Star Wars) back on the screen.
I respected Sienna Miller's attempts to add depth to Nina Fawcett (Percival's equal wife - a notion I highly applaud), but her insistence on over-emphasising that she was a woman (far too often) was heavy handed and clichéd, like most other movies for the last 10 years. Then Miller has the audacity to say her performance was different because it was a strong female character (when it was lacking because she played it like a modern feminist rather than a human being: I MUST go on this expedition despite having young children because I'm a woman and I can do ANYTHING a man can).
If you're strapped for a movie to watch, consider watching this one. It's definitely over-rated (unless you like pompous speeches by someone with an English accent). If you like revised history, cheesy acting and less emotion to your stories, you may like this one. Hunnam and Miller let the film down. This film is not suitable for kids due to graphic imagery in a few sections.