arbitonandson

Every now and again New Zealand manages to produce some really great TV series. This is another of their good ones !

The series follows the boys from two schools - one a very posh rich school, the other a poor under funded one. Both are neighbours and both compete for the same rugby cup. The series primarily follows the boys and the coach, from the poorer school, along with their families and friends.

It takes us on a journey or determination in the face of adversity, friendship, loyalty, loss, love etc. It handles each situation well and keeps you entertained throughout the episodes. It doesn't end up boring or feel forced like many dramas and ins't so deep that you end up feeling depressed like others !

Give it a try if you are looking for some good light entertainment for the night. It might not be to everyone's taste, but i think you will be pleasantly suprised at how good it is.

I am pretty sure that there were some extra scenes that were cut out of this movie as i remember watching the trailer a while back and seeing more of an introduction to the command and the Naval journey.

That said, this movie was very well done. It does cut out a lot of the slow drama and build up that a lot of these movies have, and it gets right into the heart of the action from the start. For some that may be a bad thing, but i found that it just captured my attention quicker as many movies often make too much out of the prelude to the action scenes.

The scenery and CGI was nicely done and Tom Hanks was excellent. This wasn't a fancy movie with a big shocking ending, it was a nice steady action movie. It keeps you hooked and you feel like you are truly along for the ride. The drama and relationships to the characters is subtle but it is there. I would say it was definitely an emotional journey - one that made you connect to the loss of life that was experienced on these journeys.

A very good job from Mr Hanks - not Oscar worthy - but one to watch again and again !