Moving and epic

Rating: 8/10 (28 March 2011)

This is a grand and touching movie about the human spirit and quest for freedom. A real great escape. Good points: Well directed makes you feel the cold of Siberea and the thirst and heat of the desert. The Gulag and its horrors are quite well portrayed. There is an epic sweep and some very beautiful scenery. The acting is good. Ronan does a good job. She looks the part is very angelic looking and provides a good balance to the male actors. Colin Farrell provides some comic relief though he is not too Russian in style. Ed Harris is always convincing and looks quite haggard for the role. Jim Sturgess is very competent - though not very Polish sounding - maybe it's better than a bad accent.
Faults: Don't really get to know who the secondary cast are. Not much introduction to them prior to the march beginning or during the march. Maybe a bit less of the walk and a bit more background and later life would have balanced things a bit. There was a bit too much of the walking in the sand.