Customer Rating: 
Summary: Tragic Idealism
Comment: The dramatic conflict is created by an intriguing contrast. A British archeologist --turned con man-- and a Turkish spy --turned opportunist-- do well on an abundantly corrupt island under Ottoman control. Unexpected events encourage them to renew youthfully idealistic pursuits which ironically turn tragic.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: A pleasure for those tired of derivative cinema
Comment: This is an under-appreciated little gem with a superb cast. Ben Kingsley turns a subtle and riveting performance as a minor functionary and spy during the waning days of the Ottoman Empire. A self-important little man, he files endless reports to his government in vain, for his reports are never read. He befriends an expatriate Englishman and an Austrian painter he desires but cannot have, superbly played by Charles Dance and Helen Mirren, and soon a conflict of his loyalties ensues. The locations are appropriately exotic and beautiful adding to the ambiance of the film. The story examines pride, jealousy, and deceit in all its ugliness. Betrayal ultimately follows leaving our little antihero to live out his petty existence as part of a dying empire.
A wonderful portrayal of a too little taught period of history, the quiet futility of devotion to institutions that have outlived their time, and what Gabriel Garcia Marquez called "The sentimentality of nostalgia". This delightful little film is long overdue for a release on DVD!
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Summary: Things in common
Comment: What does this film have in common with the film Emperor of the north, well not much besides that:
-I love both of them
-They are great movies
-AND BOTH OF THEM HAVEN'T BEEN RELEASED ON DVD FOR NO LOGICAL REASON.
I'll conclude this review with a plea - WE WANT DVD!!!
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Summary: pascali's world
Comment: Fascinating movie about a betrail that occurs because of a message that was never received. Ben Kingsley is wonderful.
When will this movie be made available in DVD?
Customer Rating:
Summary: excellent portrait of a time and place
Comment: The year is 1908, the place is a small island in the Aegean sea. Ben Kingsley shines in "Pascali's Island", a subtle tale of fear and betrayal in uncertain, changing times. The violent ending, although hinted at throughout the film, will jar you since the tone till then has been guardedly genteel. A fine performance is turned in by Helen Mirren, playing the Austrian painter Lydia, a woman in her 30s whom Pascali has loved from a distance for years. He is tormented by her love affair with an English archeologist as events spin toward an inevitable disastrous conclusion.
The clear, bright Aegean ocean reflecting the brilliant blue sky above makes a gorgeous scenic backdrop for the film. The ocean is seen from many interesting camera angles through windows and doorways of buildings, down from stone steps, and straight on as a large sailboat glides across it. The elemental sunshine and the open, calm sea serve as a counterpoint to the scheming people and their sinister secrets.
Highly recommended!
