Dotbankey A lot of fun.

Kidskycom It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

Hayleigh Joseph This is ultimately a movie about the very bad things that can happen when we don't address our unease, when we just try to brush it off, whether that's to fit in or to preserve our self-image.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

robinsonaustin-07490 One movie I remember watching was called The Power of One. It was a 1992 film that was based on the novel of the same name by Bryce Courtney. I remember in high school how I had to read that book as a part of the curriculum. The book concerned a young boy named PK (Peekay). PK was a young English-speaking South African boy who was sent to this boarding school after his mother had a nervous breakdown. To say that the experience was bad is an understatement. he gets confronted by a ruthless bully named Jaapie Botha, an Afrikaner who despises people of English descent due to some past war. As you would've guessed, he treats PK like trash throughout his stay at the school, even to the point of killing his pet chicken. Eventually, PK becomes interested with becoming the top heavyweight boxer in the world. We follow the story from his humble beginnings as we watch him inch his way up. For the book as much as I don't like some of the books I am made to read as part of the criteria, I did find myself liking the book. However, I remember my teacher saying to stay away from the film adaptation as it was nothing like the book. And she was right. While the movie was by no means bad, I felt that it missed the point of the book by making it into some generic la resistance movie. A major recurring element in the film adaptation is the Apartheid, which was kind of like how segregation was like over in the US but slightly worse. While the Apartheid was mentioned in the novel, it didn't play as much of a crucial role as PK wanting to become the top heavyweight champion was his continual goal. In fact, in the movie, he hardly brought up being a heavyweight champion as his primary goal. Instead, it gets pushed to the side so PK could try to take down the rulers of the Apartheid regime. With Jaapie Botha, his role slightly changes as well. In the film, he is still deeply prejudiced against PK because of his English descent and kills his pet chicken, but here, he actually gets kicked out of school rather than finishing it like in the book. In the film, he becomes a sergeant for the villainous Colonel Breyton, so that actually makes Jaapie a little more intimidating than his book counterpart who doesn't as much as get that kind of high position. As for changes, while I do understand that some changes and revisions must be made when adapting a novel into a film, here, I ultimately found myself loathing the changes. From the more stupid, I personally hated the fact that they decided to rename PK's pet chicken to Mother Courage. Just why? Why was this necessary? As I said making the film into a typical fight the power flick is doing the book some real disservice, and then you have the cliched romantic relationship that PK had, which doesn't even last long as she gets killed during an attack by Jaapie and his men. The worst change that I utterly despised, however, was PK's relationship with Doc. In the book, Doc was kind of like a father figure to PK as he mentored him. Really, Doc contributed a lot to making PK the man he was now. In the book, he gets arrested because of being an illegal immigrant, and it was traumatizing for poor PK; he even got his lower jaw broken as he tried to stop them from taking Doc. Eventually Doc returned and continued to teach PK before he died. In the film, however, he never came back. To me, it came off as just insulting. It really angered me because they made it seem like PK's relationship with Doc was nonessential to the whole story when that clearly wasn't the case. Aside from other differences between works, I didn't find them as problematic as this one. Overall, not a bad film, but it is a poor adaptation that relies on a cliche action plot, has poorly developed characters, and is overall the Power of One in anything but name.

existenz48162 From what I have seen on comments, people either loved the book and hated the movie or loved them both. Well, I have never read the book and do not intend to read it, especially after reading other comments about the differences between the two.Personally, I would prefer not to read a story about yet another whiteman-sob story about how much whitefolk struggle on their own and the power he has to fulfill his dreams (at least that's how one reviewer made the book sound). I like the Hollywood adaptation that makes it about how one person can affect others and how their will surpasses themselves.Plus, Morgan Freeman rocks it out as Geel Pete.

maralf_75 Hi, This is a wonderful movie to invite youth to work for a goal, to do something about injustice.this is also a movie you must have in your home collection, that is why I want to buy it, but I'm looking for it in Spanish o with subtitles. If anyone can help me I'll be thankfully.To hath this movies it was a good experience, because I'm in a youth group, and we had a moment to talk about this guy PK and make some comparison to our life as young people, and how to use our talents to do something about, and change our little world...Hope to be able to buy this movie

thesupertgal The Power Of One is based on a novel by the very talented Bryce Courtenay. The sequel novel,Tandia, which picks up right where The Power of One left off is equally moving and compelling reading.I am promptly going to go out and read everything else he has written. Both The Power of One and Tandia have moved me beyond words. I am a white South African girl who spent 19 years of my life in SA. I led a very privileged, sheltered childhood growing up in South Africa. I was just 15 when apartheid fell apart. My parents were not racist and in fact my father dedicated his life to working as a doctor in a very poor area but I still , unbelievably, never really had a very clear picture of the horror of apartheid until Mr Courtenay outlined it so vividly in these books.(as I said I was sheltered as a white child)I feel extraordinarily blessed and lucky to have directly avoided the violence and sickness that invaded my country for so long just because I was lucky enough to be born with white skin. I now live in the States but South Africa will always be home. I wept most of the way through both books. I have never been so moved in my life.Mr Courtenay summed up perfectly the collective guilt that white South Africans must carry with them forever more for our people's legacy of hate and brutality and oppression Even if we ourselves are not guilty - our people are guilty.He also, of course, inspires us to believe that one person can make a difference and that sanity,justice and compassion can win in the end even if the fight is long and hard.For those of you who think the characters are too stereotyped- in some aspects you are right. Not all Afrikaaners are the evil, racist villains that are portrayed in the books . However, I certainly encountered people growing up with unbelievable racism, fear and hate who do match some of the characters in the book.So there is truth to his characters also. I have no doubt that the brutality was accurate. One only has to look at historical events in SA history to confirm that. Thank you Mr Courtenay for your wonderful gift and for sharing it with the world. As for the movie: I must admit it has been years since I happened upon it on television late at night. I do remember being quite swept up in the film but then being disappointed with the direction they chose to take it in. A Hollywood ending on what could have been a remarkable African movie.I do understand that film is a completely different medium and changes were necessary to adapt the book to film. Still I cannot help being disappointed with some of the changes that I deemed uneccessary such as the changing of Peekay's name from the wonderful, mystical"The Tadpole Angel" or "onoshobishobi ingelosi" to "The rainmaker" Come on! That's lame! The rainmaker?!That has none of the same feeling the other names invoke.The addition of the girlfriend just to give Peekay a love interest is unnecessary fluff and her character not well developed enough to warrant such an addition.Nonetheless, the film is still worth seeing. I must say that I truly do hope that someone else re-makes this and does a better job.Tandia would make a fantastic film also. I am going to buy a copy on DVD and re-watch it and the post my thoughts here after refreshing it in my mind. I highly recommend reading both The Power Of One and Tandia to all interested in the history of apartheid in South Africa or just those looking for a good drama and a fascinating stories with strong characters.Even if you hate to read and are intimidated by the thought of reading such large books- just start- I guarantee you, you won't be able to put both these books down!If you haven't seen the film or read the books, I guess you should watch the film first. Otherwise you will be sorely disappointed and outraged at all the negative changes and you won't be able to truly enjoy the film for what it is: a nice attempt at an adaptation of a marvellous book.