|
Far North | 
 enlarge | Director: Asif Kapadia
Actors: Sean Bean, Michelle Yeoh, Michelle Krusiec
Studio: IMAGE ENTERTAINMENT
Category: DVD
List Price: $27.98
Buy New: $17.15
You Save: $10.83 (39%)
New (47) Used (12) Collectible (1) from $8.65
Avg. Customer Rating:  9 reviews
Sales Rank: 27923
Format: Ac-3, Color, Dolby, Dvd-video, Ntsc, Subtitled, Widescreen
Languages: English (Original Language), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 89
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: 4995
UPC: 014381499520
EAN: 0014381499520
ASIN: B001BEK8A6
Theatrical Release Date: 2007
Release Date: September 23, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand new Item. CD, DVD, Book, VHS more than 400 000 titles to choose from. ALL days Low Price !
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Haunted by a violent past saiva & anja share an isolated brutal existence in the desolate arctic tundra. When loki a wounded stranger enters their lives a romance quickly develops & the betrayal that follows leads to consequences as shocking as they are bloody. Studio: Image Entertainment Release Date: 09/23/2008 Starring: Sean Bean Michelle Krusiec Run time: 89 minutes Rating: R
Amazon.com
Far North is an eerie, somewhat dystopian fantasy starring Michelle Yeoh as Saiva, a determined survivor who has been on the run in a glacier-ridden, polar region of the Earth for years. Constantly staying a step ahead of a mysterious, conquering army ever since they destroyed her family and village, Saiva has raised a child, Anja (Michelle Krusiec), in a constant state of fear. Keeping apart from other human company, Anja, now a young woman, becomes interested in living a fuller life when a stranger, Loki (Sean Bean), turns up. A fugitive from those same, roaming men with guns, Loki initially seems interested in a flattered Saiva, but quickly turns his romantic attention to the emotionally-starved Anja, creating an unusual and uncomfortable tension in their cocoon-like world. A visually dazzling movie shot in a starkly beautiful corner of the planet, Far North uses the lonely exotica of its backdrop as a huge metaphor for the absence of human relationships and the madness such isolation engenders. The small cast is terrific, with Yeoh typically expressing volumes of passion behind the greatest restraint. Directed by Asif Kapadia, Far North looks and feels like a dream that might awake one in a cold sweat. --Tom Keogh
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 4 more reviews...
 Eerie January 8, 2009
Described in one word? Eerie. This excellent film ended with a total unexpected climax that was both eerie and chilling. Outstanding cinamatography and brutal visual splendor lend to this compelling story that ended with a twist that is unexpected.
 Disturbingly Beautiful December 16, 2008
Sure I get knocked for my liking of Sean Bean, but he wasn't the only reason for my purchase of Far North. This beautiful, yet creepy and tragic 2007 film based on a story from Sara Maitland's collection Far North and Other Dark Tales will have you awing and grimacing at the screen.
Saiva (Michelle Yeoh) was cursed as a child and cast from her village. Once she finds happiness with a neighboring tribe, tragedy follows her again. She rescues Anja (Michelle Krusiec) and raises her into the ravages of the artic, away from society and all its evils. One day, however, Saiva helps Loki (Sean Bean), a freezing soldier lost in the artic wilderness. Saiva warns Anja not to be charmed by the first man she's met. Both women, however, fall for Loki, and disaster follows.
Folks who've read my reviews know I don't like to spoil a film experience, but where Far North is concerned, I really can't tell you anything else about the story. My husband thought the obvious of oft villain Sean Bean (Patriot Games, Goldeneye), "He kills them, right?" I countered with, "No, they have threeways." Both are plausible scenarios to the modern viewer, but the things you expect most in Far North aren't the things that happen. BAFTA winning director Asif Kapadia (The Return) and co screenwriter Tim Miller (The Warrior) have taken Maitland's tiny story and stretched into a philosophical and disturbing little statement. The film rises and falls upon Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Tomorrow Never Dies) and she is up to the task as the tormented Saiva. Some of the flashbacks trying to make her look younger seem out of place, but Yeoh's silent looks and stilted dialogue are perfection. It's a shame most Americans don't get to see most of her work; I've enjoyed every film in which I've seen Yeoh. She can act. We believe Saiva is a tough woman who can brave this horrid landscape, and yet we know she is capable of compassion. There isn't a lot of dialogue among the three leads, Far North feels more like a play. Camera angles and expressions sell the story, and when words are spoken, they are forceful and take on more than face value meanings. Newcomer Michelle Krusiec (Dirty Sexy Money) steps up to the plate as Anja. She's young, disenchanted with this rugged lifestyle. Anja's been aged by the artic yet is still very young and juvenile in comparison with the outside word. And of course there's Sean Bean. I often wish he had more to do in some of his smaller roles, (NBC's recent Crusoe especially) but here, Sean Bean gives us just enough to like Loki, wonder about him, and question his feelings towards both ladies.
Despite fine performances all around, the incredible artic location is what makes Far North. The ice, cold water, white snow; Norway is the picture of beauty and the face of danger. Hypothermia, jagged rock cliffs, falling ice; Any number of natural disasters-or the viles of people-could harm you and there's no escape, no help for hundred of miles. I wouldn't say it is as exceptional as Platoon, but Far North reminds me of Oliver Stone's Oscar winning Vietnam Epic. It's so visually horrifying and disturbing that you don't really want to watch it again, but you can't look away either. Folks who are sensitive to animal plights might want to skip a few scenes in Far North. Seeing women kill dogs and seals is very upsetting to a lot of people, but we must remember in the arctic, this is a way of life.
As realistic as Far North's unforgiving locations are-and the behind the scenes documentary on the DVD tells us exactly how difficult it was for the cast and crew-there's also something very ambiguous about the story. It's only ninety minutes, but it seems longer, and has a very questionable but not unsatisfying ending. Far North reads like a fable; a tale told to children warning of consequences and humanity. Loki is the Norse God of mischief. Is he even real? In this far away place at the edge of the world, has Saiva somehow crossed to another realm? One is not even sure when Far North actually takes place. Russian soldiers are persecuting native tribes, but is their presence meant to be taken as an historical marker or are they representative of the evils of society?
Not that he is a particularly glamorous actor, but Sean Bean plays perhaps his least pretty role here. He's hypothermic and bundled up for most of the film, and when he strips down, it's not his usual action hero form. Sharpe fans and Sean Bean Obsessive Compulsive Disorder ladies will joke that it's that because Sean Bean has entered these women's lives that causes all the trouble. But it's more than that. It's the mere fact that a man, such a mysterious man, any man really could cause such catastrophe for these two women. Even if you don't know about the shape shifting promiscuous Norse Loki, Far North doesn't give easy answers. On my first viewing, I was so horrified by Far North, I didn't even realize Sean Bean was in the buff. In the Artic? I was too busy screaming at the television screen. It's not something I normally do, and after my father heard me, I sent him into a viewing of Far North cold turkey. His verdict? "Horrible film. I liked it!"
Unfortunately, not a lot of people have seen Far North. It's done well in the festival circuit, and even the making of documentary had garnered accolades, but Far North has yet to see even a limited release or theater distribution. The DVD is available online, and Far North even opened the first annual Philadelphia Asian-American Film Festival. Far North is not exclusively an ethnic film, nor am I certain it is merely an art house picture as its history would seem. Is Far North a horror movie? Quite possibly. It definitely gave me the chills and had me screaming. When was the last time a real horror film did that?
fine film December 3, 2008
it was a rather silly plot in the end: girl never sees man, sees man, flirts with man, other woman gets jealous because she wants man, female tension. then sex, jealousy, more sex, then girl wants to have a family, angst, some weird sex, then DEATH.
Whoa! November 23, 2008
This movie was very visually stunning, and well acted to boot. I don't want to give spoilers, but the interaction of the main characters leads to a powerful finish. I highly recommend this movie!
 "The Sea Is Frozen" ~ Thawing Ice And Emotions Are A Dangerous Combination November 5, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The '07 film `Far North' is a brutal tale of misdirected romance and passion as played out between two nomadic women and a male intruder found near death on the arctic tundra. Saiva (Michelle Yeoh) and Anja (Michelle Krusiec) have lived alone and isolated in the frozen far north for almost twenty years. Now Loki (Sean Bean) has entered into their world his presence stirs up emotions in the female camp that is slowly but surely turning their loving familial relationship into a bitter rivalry. Will Loki leave as planned when the sea is frozen and if he does will he leave alone or accompanied?
`Far North' is a difficult film to rate. I love the cast, the cinematography is breathtaking and the soundtrack haunting. The sound of one solitary cello accompanied by the sound of the wind is both comforting and haunting. However the storyline unfolds slowly, the dialogue is terse at best and much of the interaction between the trio of characters takes place within the confines of a tent enclosure making the visuals dark, murky and at times indiscernible. It's hard to recommend this one, I trust you to make the call on your own.
My Rating: -3 1/2 Stars-.
|
|
|
© 2007 saydeals.com. All rights reserved. | |
