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Waste of time

To me, this movie is perfection.

Expected more

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

I personally like this film, though I can see why others wouldn't. It is slow with some violence and discusses religion heavily.One thing that I love about this movie is that it's very, very aesthetically authentic. I watch it sometimes just to see the andalusian horses and mules, the natives that aren't actors and the beautiful locations that aren't set pieces but REAL places. I have never seen a film that looked so... genuine. Ever.The Mission does take awhile to pull you into the plot but once you're there, you'll find yourself waiting to see what unfolds with bated breath.I would recommend this movie to the thinkers and open-minded; there is a lot to learn from the events that unfold in this tragedy.

Possibly the greatest musical score ever written for a film. The only deduction from the maximum 10, is that whilst believable, the great actor Ray MacAnally, is just not sufficiently wicked! In all a rather sobering commentary on the entire colonial era, and the great destruction it wrought on communities in South America and Africa.

It's rare to see a movie treat reverence with, well, reverence.This film treats viewers to one man's journey from being engaged with a crew of slavers to finally giving up his mercenary lifestyle and reaching out to members of a tribe of natives in order that he can fortify both his own life, and theirs. Mutual understanding is the goal of De Niro's character, Mendoza, but the tribe have been mistreated in the past, and they are distrustful of the initial hand of friendship he extends. This is partly because Mendoza has former ties to the slavers, and partly because he now represents an authoritative religion in the Jesuits.Though the Jesuits' (and the protagonist's) credo is beneficent, he must consistently work to earn their trust in the hopes that both groups of people will finally be able to engage with one another symbiotically. He brings them a view of the world that is rigid in some ways, but with enough humility from his travails and enough compassion to compromise when necessary.All is not well, however, because though Mendoza and his mentor, Father Gabriel eventually earn the trust of the Guarani, elements within the governments backing the two peoples are pushing for a sectarian approach to the land, and its people.Mendoza and his mentor eventually decide that what motivates them is a love for the people, rather than a rigid adherence to the institutions that caused the situation to spiral out of control. Their efforts and the fate of the people caught under the governmental territory dispute come to light only as the movie progresses.The performances of all actors and especially the soundtrack to this movie help make it a stunning period piece in the history of rapid religious and imperial expansion, and provide a somber look at how one man can, with diligence, empathy, and sincerity, build bridges that unify, and that send a message of hope for the future.

"Rodrigo Mendoza" (Robert De Niro) is a slave trader in South America who kills his own brother in a fit of jealous rage. Although he is not convicted by any court he still regrets his action and because of that he shuts himself out of society in a nearby church. Eventually, he decides to seek forgiveness by doing an extremely difficult penance. When that is finally accomplished he becomes a Jesuit monk working at a newly built mission far inside the jungle helping the same tribe he had tried to enslave. Unfortunately, time doesn't stop and all too soon other slave traders appear with the main goal of tearing down all of the missions in the area thereby ending any refuge for the unfortunate Indian tribesmen. Now rather than reveal any more of this movie I will just say this was a slow but powerful film which manages to capture the beautiful scenery of South America along with the power and greed prevalent during this particular time in history. It also won several awards including the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival along with being nominated for "Best Picture" at the Academy Awards. Again, while it's rather slow at times, it's still something worth viewing for those who might be interested in this type of film.