An inspiring tale!...

Rating: 8/10 (31 August 2012)

A really well made film about an epic journey; Peter Weir is good at this kind of thing and this is a good example of his work. A nice musical score by Burkhard von Dallwitz complements the visuals with quite anthemic themes, particularly towards the end. All the performances were very good; particularly Jim Sturgess as Janusz, Colin Farrell as Valka, Ed Harris as Mr. Smith, Saoirse Ronan as Irena and Mark Strong as Khabarov. Honourable mentions must go to; Gustaf Skarsgård as Voss, Alexandru Potocean as Tomasz, Sebastian Urzendowsky as Kazik and Dragos Bucur as Zoran.
There is a bit of a spoiler at the beginning of the film where the audience is told how many make it to India which does take a little of the impact away from the film. You find yourself wondering just when various cast members might either meet their demise or decide to take another path. It's a distraction I could have done without. The film is a bit too long and there is a lot of time spent in just getting out of Russia which, I felt, could have been better spent in crossing the Himalayas (just my personal preference). Over all though I did find it quite inspiring that such a journey could be made and I felt quite elated at the end. I may not watch it again, but I'm glad I gave it at least one viewing. Worth a look!.
SteelMonster's verdict: RECOMMENDED.
My score: 7.7/10
IMDb Score: 7.3/10 (based on 42,826 votes at the time of going to press).
MetaScore: 66/100: (Based on 33 critic reviews provided by Metacritic.com at the time of going to press).
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 75/100 (based on 122 reviews counted at the time of going to press).
Rotten Tomatoes 'Audience' Score: 70/100 'Liked it' (based on 29,977 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
You can find an expanded version of this review on my blog: Thoughts of a SteelMonster.