Beyond Rangoon

An earnest and slightly uneasy attempt to combine a narrative of an innocent in peril with a polemic exposing an unlovely regime; it works better on the level of a suspense drama than as a political one.

Good direction and jungle atmosphere from Boorman, and the film is obviously sincere about exposing the violence of the Burmese government, but ultimately this is just another of those Crazy Stupid White Person Behaves Recklessly in a Scary Foreign Country movies. Arquette feels her role deeply, U Aung Ko gives a fine performance as her grandfatherly guide, and McDormand and Gray are a pleasure to watch in their small parts. Still, there's not really much here to stick in the mind.

The exotic location along with Hans Zimmer's score at least gives some basis of quality for this movie. Unfortunately most of what happens in this setting is a let down. Boorman's stately period drama camerawork distances us and is a major barrier to involvement. The dialogue is trite and the acting is barely fit for a TV show. All in all the level of thrill, danger, atmosphere, emotion or authenticity never climbs above a 3/10. I can't believe this is the same director who made Deliverance.