Steineded
How sad is this?
Voxitype
Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.
Brendon Jones
It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.
Yash Wade
Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.
darbski
***SPOILERS*** I gotta wonder how many people ever gave a thought to the idea of Australian cowboys? How about Hawaiian cowboys? African cowboys? YUP. Probably one out of a hundred. Russian cowboys? Nah. This is a fine movie from a viewpoint few of us Americans think of - another country ! Imagine that!! Before there was a Quigley down under, There was a Man From Snowy River. I saw it on cable a long time ago, and then recently again. Kirk Douglas does a pretty good job of it, but, I'll bet they could've found an Aussie to play this grizzled (and ungrizzled) role just as well. A fast moving plot with a couple of ranch rats, a domineering father, a guy who loves the beautiful girl, and an escaped stallion? Gee, that is a pretty good recipe for a western of any country. Throw in great horsemanship, fantastic scenery, and terrific acting, and you get this movie.. it's a 10.
cstephenson-1961
I first saw this movie at a truck stop in Idaho in 92 and was hooked! The cinematography, the actors, and especially the sound track are breathtaking. The sound track is tremendous with softness of the piano and the excitement generated by the french horns. Absolutely Awesome!!!This is also a fun about someone that believes in himself and his principles. He fights for what he believes. That's rare these days. The female characters, Jessica and Mrs Hume carry themselves brilliantly and are a good balance against Tom and Kirk. I liked Kirk Douglas playing both parts. He was always one of my favorite actors.I've seen it so many times, I probably have the script memorized. I never get tired of the beauty of film. Highly Recommend it to anyone that likes horses!
wes-connors
After his widower father dies in a horsing accident, young Tom Burlinson (as Jim Craig) is left to manage his Australian "Snowy River" farm, with only wizened, peg-legged prospector Kirk Douglas (as Spur) to help. Times are hard, so Mr. Burlinson goes to work for Mr. Douglas' wealthy, silver-haired brother rancher "Mr. Harrison" (also played by Kirk Douglas). When a big job comes up, the silver-haired (older?) Douglas feels Burlinson is too young and inexperienced to go along; so, Burlinson stays behind, and falls in love with the boss' daughter, Sigrid Thornton (as Jessica Harrison).The least satisfactory aspect of director George Miller's "The Man from Snowy River" is a weak storyline. Observe, for example, the "Jessica is lost" sequence of events. The damsel gets lost in one of those "freak" storms, while running away. Her worried father rounds up a posses of drunk men to find her, after predicting bad weather. Damsel "Jessica" rolls herself on to the edge of a conveniently appearing cliff. Father and the suddenly sober men don't check Burlinson's farm. Hero Burlinson discovers the damsel. After building a fire, he decides to kiss her.The "romance" is played too innocently for as obvious an attracted man and woman as Burlinson and Ms. Thornton. To make matters worse, the Douglas brothers have a "dark history" which is revealed before any mystery is built up regarding the matter. The main attraction, herein, is the Australian scenery.**** The Man from Snowy River (3/25/82) George Miller ~ Tom Burlinson, Kirk Douglas, Sigrid Thornton
keesha45
Calling this a western...well, it is and it ain't. Some say the Wild West ended when the last famous outlaw Harry Tracy ended his career a little over a century ago, his Boot Hill being in a field about 50 miles west of Spokane, Washington. This movie takes place in Australia, which true enough, is some 8,000 miles west of the Mississippi, but it's also in the Far East part of the Eastern Hemisphere. And it's not your typical shoot-em-up either. There are no bank-robbing bandits, no gunfights on Main Street, no cavalry fighting the natives. But you'll find here a great coming-of-age romantic tale, with some stirring action sequences never seen before on film, all in the midst of some gorgeous location footage of the Snowy Mountains, which John Ford would have envied for his western films. This area of Australia, if one superimposed the map of the continental U.S. over Australia, would place the Snowy River country in about the same place as our Florida Everglades and not too far from where the Smoky Mountains begin in Georgia. Besides similar sounding names (Snowy-Smoky) this highest part of Australia contains its highest peak with an altitude very nearly the same as the Smokys' highest one in Tennessee, and a landscape that could pass for the southern part of the Appalachian chain as mentioned. Despite recent droughts and wildfires Down Under, the Snowy Mountains have changed little since Banjo Paterson wrote the poem on which this film is based and the equally memorable "Waltzing Matilda," unofficial national anthem of that nation, in the 1890s. Paterson, by the way, is such a famous person even today, that his face appears on the Aussie 10-dollar bill. In contrast, the American sawbuck only has a guy whose greatest fame was getting shot in a duel. Sad to say, this film never did as well at the U.S. box office as other Aussie films like the Mad Max trilogy, which launched Mel Gibson to super stardom, and the even bigger moneymaking franchise of the Crocodile Dundee films. TMFSR never rated a single Oscar nomination (not surprising for a non-Hollywood film), but amazingly enough only won a single AFI award (the Australian Oscar) for its musical score. The Golden Globes, however, gave it a Best Foreign Film nomination, won that year by GANDHI. Since its release, though, audiences worldwide have fallen in love with this gem of a movie, as did the folks at the Lidgerwood Presbyterian Church where we saw it last weekend. While not a true Western per se, it contains the same Judeo-Christian values that the best classic Hollywood westerns espouse. These values were embodied in the Code of the West, a liberal interpretation of the Ten Commandments: Always fight fair, protect women and children, respect others' property, and honor God and country. If you've never seen this movie, you're in for a treat when you do. If you've seen it before, it's worth watching again. Movies as good as this are a rare find. Dale Roloff