Mio in the Land of Faraway (1987)

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

The 80s saw a decade of some really good fantasy films, films like NeverEnding Story, Princess Bride, The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth and Legend. Mio in the Land of Faraway is not one of the great fantasy films from a personal standpoint(there are some great ones from other decades too), however it does deserve better recognition than it does. The script can get stilted and childish, not all the special effects are great(for example the floating head is a memorable image, but you need to decide for yourself whether it's for the right reasons) and Timothy Bottoms doesn't have that much to do. It is a very beautiful-looking film though, the photography is simple but sweeping, the costumes are appropriate and there are some special effects that are quite good. But visually it is the lighting and sets that are the real revelations. The lighting is especially good in the darker moments, with the firelight and shadows as said already there is a real sense of creepiness, and the sets are so wondrously constructed with a striking contrast of lush and elegant for Faraway, dark and eerie for the dark moments and drab for Earth. Along with the visuals, the other big standout was the music, a score that is so beautifully soothing on the ears but it also haunts the mind, as any score for a good vs. evil film should do. The story sets itself up carefully and has all the right elements for fantasy and a tale of good vs. evil. There is the bullying angle that is easy to identify with, and the film is successful in drawing the inner child within you into the world that the characters inhabit. From an archetypal view, the characters are familiar to us but they are still engaging enough. The acting is fine, Nick Pickard and particularly Christian Bale are excellent in the lead roles and while one might wish that Christopher Lee were introduced into the film earlier, considering an actor of his calibre, he is an appropriately menacing villain of the piece. To conclude, very nice film, not without areas of improvement but should be better known. Once you look past the flaws and see the many merits there are, and judge the film on its own terms rather than a book vs. film comparison it might help to enjoy it more(mind you, there is emphasis on might to save the risk of ignorance), while it does help you don't necessarily have to be somebody who grew up perceiving it as a lifelong childhood favourite to like Mio in the Land of Faraway. 8/10 Bethany Cox

I have 5 things in my house that if it were burning down I would risk my life to save them; The Land of Faraway is one of them. I have a VHS copy from the U.S. that I got in 1989 when I was 3 years old. I'm 22 now and I still love the film that much, I'm actually watching it right now.This review may contain spoilers! The Land Of Faraway or Mio Min Mio, as most people know it, is the story of a boy named Bosse. His adoptive parents hate him and let him know it, the older kids bully him, and he only has two real friends: Mrs. Lundin a nice young woman who works at a local store and Benke a boy from school. Bosse greatest dream is to have a father that loves him like Benke. One day Mrs. Lundin gives Bosse a golden apple and asks him to mail a post card for her. The post card is to the King of the Land of Faraway and says something like "the one you have been looking for is here; he will have an apple of gold in his hand". Then out of a bottle on the ground a giant head/spirit emerges and takes Bosse away to the Land of Faraway. Bosse finds out that he's really Mio the Prince of the Land of Faraway! But there is a great evil man named Kato who steals children and turns them into birds, legend says that only a Prince can kill Kato and save the children. So Mio/Bosse sets of with friend Jum-Jum/Benke on an awesome adventure to defeat Kato! The music in the film is so beautiful and haunting; you will be humming it for days. The acting by Nick Pickard as Bosse/Mio and Christian Bale as Benke/Jum-Jum is outstanding. I particularly love the lighting in the film; firelight creates creepy shadows across the sets and really sets the mood for the darker scenes. The copy I have is old so the sound is really bad and since the movie was made in the late 1980s the video quality looks sort of fuzzy and out of focus compared to new DVDs.I would recommend this movie to every kid I have ever met and to adults who are fantasy fans.~*Leah

I think this movie is more or less for younger kids. Yeah, I watched and enjoyed it, but it is filled with very simple and sometimes corny elements and sequences that were a bit too modest for me. The two actors were great though, their performances were definitely okay. I like Christian Bale a lot and - to be honest - bought this one just because he is in it. Nicholas Pickard was genuine and smart as well. Again, I just felt a bit too old for it, I thought it was presented like a fairy tale. The setting was still okay and the underlying themes are wonderful (father-son, friendship, courage, love etc). I give it a 7 because of its unusual but fine approach and as it does fulfil its basic premise, which is to entertain kids between 5 and 10.

I first saw this film when my mother bought it on VHS in a store... I think I was about seven. I loved it from the moment I first watched it, and even now, at nineteen, it's still one of my favorite movies.Now, I realize the effects aren't that great and the ADR is horrible--but as fairytales go, it's among the best. I found the plot to be better translated to film than that of The Neverending Story (which is one of my favorite books--but not one of my favorite movies), and the music is wonderful. Watching the movie was very reminiscent to reading The Chronicles of Narnia, or in fact reading a British translation of Astrid Lindgren's book.This is still my favorite of Christian Bale's many roles, and among my favorite Christopher Lee roles (the man has over 700, so it's hard to pick faves sometimes ^_^).A classic for children and families, I must say. (And coming from a cynical college student, that's saying something!)