Feast for the Eyes and Ears

Rating: 7/10 (6 May 2008)

Roland Joffe's period film is breathtaking to look at and listen to, but it's directed with a heavier hand than his breakout film from two years earlier, "The Killing Fields."
I had trouble with the casting too. Jeremy Irons feels right for his role, but it's tough to accept Robert DeNiro in period films -- he's such a remarkable contemporary actor, and he's created such iconic representations of modern urban life, that he feels out of place in something like this.
The film is a feast for the eyes and ears though, with Chris Menges, who had won an Oscar for photographing "The Killing Fields", adding a second trophy to his mantle for his work here; and Ennio Morricone providing an instantly classic score.
Grade: A-