Bustin' Bonaparte
by David Lister
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Anneke Weidemann, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Karin van der Laag, Luke Gallant, Richard E. GrantDirector: David Lister
Brand: Universal Studios
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1
Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 97 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-04-04
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Freestyle Releasing
Movie Reviews of Bustin' Bonaparte
Movie Review: A Modern-Day Fairytale
Summary: 5 Stars
BUSTIN' BONAPARTE reminds me of those old fables and stories, that were once commonly told to children . The children were entertained, but were also required to think, thus learning something from the story which they carried into their lives. Anyone familiar with fairytale symbolism and archetypes will quickly recognize them in this movie.
BUSTIN' BONAPARTE takes place on a remote farm in South Africa, during sometime in the mid-19th century. Two little Boer girls, Lyndall (Kasha Kropinski) and Em (Anneke Weidemann) are stuck living with a fat, self-righteous woman named Sannie (Karin Van Der Laag). An aunt to the elder one, and a stepmother to the younger, Sannie rules over the farm and everything and anyone on it. The only joy the girls have is in being with Otto, a kindly old German farmhand (Armin Mueller-Stahl) and Waldo (Luke Gallant), his precocious mixed-race little boy. The old German is a self-educated man with a cabin full of books. He has repented his angry, foolish younger years and teaches the three children not only about the outside world, but also about the Good in the world.
Unfortunately, Otto had become too enamored and trusting of the good in people. One day an Irish vagabond, Bonaparte Blenkins (Richard E. Grant), shows up in rags and rotted shoes, begging for food and rest. The old German sticks up for Irishman against Sannie's prejudices. Otto takes Bonaparte in, clothes him, finds him work. Soon, however, the cunning outsider begins to win over the woman with lies and deception, ultimately at the expense of the old man.
I enjoyed this movie on many levels. It is a well done story, with quality acting. Not only Mueller-Stahl and Grant but the children -especially Luke Gallant as the adorable Waldo- give excellent performances as well. What truly makes this movie exceptional, however, is what it says about love and trust, righteousness and compassion, good and bad. It reminds the viewer that goodness must also be vigilant and that evil often comes out of petty selfishness.
Summary of Bustin' Bonaparte
BUSTIN BONAPARTE - DVD Movie