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Some war
movies work on the assumption that viewers will give a darn about
their characters. Perhaps they think that the horror of
watching someone be shot (or blown up, etc.) is enough to awaken
humanity and make the characters seem real. It's not.
Some war
movies try to give their characters handy little backgrounds and
mannerisms (ie, Tom Hanks' shaking hands in "Saving Private
Ryan."). These films don't bother with actual character
development so much as they provide outlines, sketches that viewers
can fill in.
Some war
movies try to develop a backstory alongside the war story.
"Pearl
Harbor" is this type, and it was accused of confusing
things and criticized for overwhelming sappiness. That's a
major flaw.
"Captain Corelli's Mandolin" picks up where "Pearl
Harbor" left off in the war-movie genre. First, a
love story is woven. It's sappy, but perhaps not too
sappy. Then, the fighting begins and your heart strings are
pulled, if you have any shreds left after the more ridiculous
attempts of war movies with semi-sympathetic characters. You
can engage with these characters and you almost care what happens to
them. You'd definitely care if what happens to them wasn't so
darn obvious. Still, you're interested.
In
Greece, a doctor's daughter is happily betrothed to a fisherman who
goes off to fight in WWII. While he's gone, the Italians
occupy her city and Captain Corelli occupies her home, and,
eventually, her heart. The Italians and Greeks endear
themselves to one another (and even halfway to a German). The
fighting explodes as Hitler does his Hitler things just off of the
screen, and everyone's lives are endangered. Will love save
the lovers? Will it save the town? Can anyone ever be
happy again?
Tight
performances help the story along, although an Italian-accented
Nicholas Cage does take some getting used to. "Captain Corelli's
Mandolin" is a good watch -- perhaps if it had been made
in Hollywood's more glamorous, more genuine days, it would have been
great. Classic even.
-- Liz
( 2 1/2 out of 4 pops )
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