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Purely Joyful Movie!

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

I would refer readers of this review to the review written by Steve Skafte in this review forum. He has pretty much nailed the movie in his review and I agree with most of what he has to say.However, I would add the following. Heather Graham's struggle with the role of young Alexandra entails more than just the written dialog. She also struggles with a Swedish dialect (as to other characters). It's too bad because she really looks like she could be a young Jessica Lange. I would add that Reed Diamond's performance as Emil seems stilted to me. Maybe that is just the dialog, as Steve Skafte suggests, but I really think it's an acting problem. These two aren't the only actors that fall short.To the praise of Jessica Lange, I would add significant praise for Anne Heche as Marie. She really brings this role to life and you will see no issues with her dialog. Her performance alone makes the love between Marie and Emil believable.Now, for the spoiler. If you haven't seen the movie, don't read this part!!! The story of Emil and Marie is beautifully done and when they finally consummate their love, great tension is generated as her husband goes through a series of actions that lead to his taking up his rifle. This part is very, very well done. And when he kills the lovers, it is a perfect tragic moment.I wish I could give this movie seven stars instead of six, but the great photography, locations, directing, music, and the performances of Lange and Heche cannot make amends for the poorly written dialog and the other unprofessional performance issues that keep this from being a great film.

I had never read the novel before so I was coming into this movie cold. While I understood that the basis for the story was about a woman's learning to love and respect the land, I nonetheless found it to be quite the little snoozefest. Thanks much for tipping me off that it was faithful to Willa Cather's novel (which I won't be buying anytime soon unless I happen to go through another bout of insomnia).For a much more entertaining movie about a woman's love for the land, pop Gone With the Wind into your DVD player. Give me the emotional Irish any day of the week next to the "stoic" Swedes. It actually took a hotheaded German capping off some rounds into a couple of lovers before anyone expressed a little emotion.What truly surprised me was how actors as talented as Jessica Lange and David Strathairn generated absolutely no chemistry together. I'm guessing that Strathairn's character, Carl, the sensitive, caring artist was actually gay trying to pass for straight. That would certainly explain their gentle platonic friendship.

I was looking at some other reviews of this and felt pressed to say, it rally was pretty good. Criticisms that it was predictable are a bit unfounded when you remember that this was based on Willa Cather's novel.She wrote it first. I enjoyed the production. It talked about how people make decisions that have consequences beyond their expectations. The affair between Marie and Emil is more about Marie's decision to marry who and when she did. These things could happen today. Still, the slice of life in for American settlers is what has always drawn me to Willa Cather's works. I think Hallmark's depiction is quite solid. Jessica Lange was a good choice for the lead. Her story could have been that of so many others. Nowadays we forget that this country was settled by people faced with different choices and harder lives than we face today.

Awesome story of how a woman takes over the ranch aft her father dies. Looking at it from a genealogical viewpoint of a genealogist's....I am so glad they made this excellent film. Stories such as this came from our ancestors for sure as such ocurrences actually did happen very often. Women were left to run many outfits when the men died or went wandering....they had the gusto, fortitude and fight to do it, thats why we are here today, because of these courageous ancestors. Nebraska is a gorgeous state and the scenery is truly depictive of it as I lived there. The culmination of the two childhood friends marrying, even though she was 4yrs his senior...happened all too often back in those days. Its a very emotional, heart beating film and well done. Jessica Lange is such a wonderful actress and did an excellent job in this film as did David Strathairn.