The Way Back (2010)

Sometimes surprises come from odd places. Plot descriptions for this movie do not do it justice. Yes, a group of prison camp escapees walk 4000 miles to freedom, but there is so much more than that. There are character evolution, surprises, humor, stunning photography, and great survival tips.

Dragos Bucur, a relative newcomer, is surrounded by veteran stars and still manages to hold his own. Ed Harris plays the lone American in this international group of escapees. Colin Farrell plays a Russian thug who helps facilitate the escape but does not make it to the promised land. Spoiler you say? Not so fast. See for yourself.

Saoirse Ronan is the sole woman with any significant role here and she holds her own very well. In fact, one might say she is key to getting the survivors to India. You will also likely recognize Mark Strong in a role that is very uncharacteristic for him.

This movie earned a "Best Make-up" nomination, which may surprise you. What make-up you ask? Exactly!

Watch this movie with someone who likes camping.

Pride and Glory

If you can't stand the thought of Colin Farrell being a bad guy, you may want to skip this movie. On the other hand, if you like the line he tip-toed in Miami Vice (the movie) then you may enjoy how he comes down on this one. I did.

Edward Norton does his usual excellent job of playing complex characters. However, I did see a bit of Bruce Banner here as well as his Red Dragon character, Will Graham. But as a guy who likes playing characters with as many personalities as possible this should not surprise us. I would really like to see Norton do a comedy one of these days to see how well he departs from his norm.

Jon Voight rounds out this family-of-cops story with great relish. I think he actually enjoyed playing this role unlike some of his more recent outings. Noah Emmerich plays the brother caught between two impossible choices here. Well written and well played.

Who do you cheer for when bad cops do bad things to bad guys? This is a common issue in our society and several of those points are raised in this story. But they are so subtle you may not even recognize them.

Watch this movie with someone who has a strong sense of right and wrong.