Average Rating: 6.8/10
Reviews Counted: 75
Fresh: 58 | Rotten: 17
The plight of Asian refugees is sensitively rendered, and the movie builds, with the help of Nolte, to a wrenchingly poignant conclusion.
Average Rating: 6.9/10
Critic Reviews: 23
Fresh: 20 | Rotten: 3
The plight of Asian refugees is sensitively rendered, and the movie builds, with the help of Nolte, to a wrenchingly poignant conclusion.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.7/5
User Ratings: 1,959
A Vietnamese man looking for a better life embarks on a dangerous and eye-opening voyage to America in this powerful drama set during the early '90s. In 1990, Binh (Damien Nguyen) is a man in his early twenties who has never known his parents, though he is clearly of mixed-race parentage, which makes him an outcast in his community. Weary of being treated like an animal, Binh sets out to find his mother, Mai (Thi Kim Xuan Chau), only to discover she works as a servant for a wealthy family who
Jul 8, 2005 Wide
Dec 13, 2005
$0.3M
Sony Pictures Classics
All Critics (82) | Top Critics (24) | Fresh (60) | Rotten (17) | DVD (8)
Its epic tale of two cultures tragically entwined is anchored by deep and elemental emotions.
Conditions for the characters may be bleak, but their perseverance makes the story compelling.
[A] graceful and yet harrowing drama.
A poignant and affecting portrait of the war's lingering consequences.
At times, the movie feels like a manufactured Asian Chocolat, which drives the label 'art house movie' even further into mainstream banality.
Along with 1983's El Norte and 1963's America, America, The Beautiful Country conveys something essential about the immigrant experience.
This haunting film casts a wide swath that veers between obvious cliches and intensely visceral truths.
Provocative drama -- mature teens and adults only.
Worthwhile as an informative and touching reminder of the existence of a forgotten set of innocent victims of the Vietnam conflict.
An ambitious movie made on a modest budget, its intention is better than its execution.
The most stunning beauty comes in human connections, physical touch, unconditional acceptance, familial love - in the treacherous and tender terrain of the human heart.
A smart and moving sketch of desire and hope...
"The Beautiful Country" touches on many thorny social issues about the way the world works, but it's ultimately Binh's story, a truthful and heartening one.
Norwegian director Hans Petter Moland's ambitious but bleak social problem film is compelling but never fully satisfies in its clumsy dramatics.
Some of the plotting borders on ludicrous, and newcomer Nguyen is pretty much charisma-free.
There's little said about what is driving Binh on this journey -- and without that, the trip is nearly as hard on audiences as it is on him.
A well-intentioned but not entirely successful blend of tragic melodrama, social-issue expose and compassionate portraiture...
Slow paced, yet intriguing. I should take away 1/2 a star for the unsatisfying ending, but I just couldn't make myself do it. This was very well done, very moving, and very well casted. No Disney ending here, but nice enough to not get me too mad...
January 24, 2012Super Reviewer
"The Beautiful Country" starts in rural Vietnam in 1990 where Binh(Damien Nguyen) is already an outcast in society for having an American father, but his adoptive mother's possible upcoming marriage may force him out even more into the cold. So, he packs up his meager belongings and heads to Ho Chi Minh City to stay
October 26, 2006Super Reviewer
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