Unalloyed Gold

Rating: 9/10 (6 February 2006)

It is refreshing to see what a film maker can do when he dispenses with car chases, gunfire, fiery explosions, and cartoon- like digital effects and returns to that one core value-- quality and talent. Anthony Hopkins scores a tour de force with his portrayal of Burt Munro; it is like watching a master at his craft. His looking through his old family photo album with the young boy "...here's Ernie, there's my Mum....they're all gone now.." is as moving a scene as the one in Honkeytonk Man where John McIntire talks to his grandson about what it was like in the Oklahoma Land Rush of his youth. Subtle, underplayed, but filled with deep emotion. This isn't a "motorcycle movie"; it's simply a kind and gentle tale that inspires dreams. A thoroughly enjoyable film. As Burt says when he finally sets foot on the salt of Bonneville, "...big things happen here...this is Holy ground, Mate!"