User Reviews

"The Mission" is a British/French co-production from 1986, so this one is already over 30 years old. It is mostly in the English language, but there's parts in all kinds of different languages actually, so anyway you will need subtitles for sure. Writer is Robert Bolt and he won a Golden Globe for his screenplay here, more than consolation for his work not getting in at the Oscars that time, especially as he was already a two-time Oscar winner back then. The director is Roland Joffé and as I am a pretty big fan of "The Killing Fields", I was curious about this one from briefly afterwards because these two are really his career-defining works, also in terms of awards recognition. These slightly over two hours we got here scored many Oscar nominations, also important ones, even if "only" it eventually won for cinematography. But I can see why. It sure is a visually stunning film at times. A bit of a pity neither Irons nor De Niro got in. I am actually a bit surprised De Niro got virtually no awards recognition for his turn here. Irons got more, including a Golden Globe nod, he was probably also closer to an Oscar nom. And you will also find a pretty young (not very young) Liam Neeson in the cast list in one of the biggest supporting roles. But his character, unlike the other two, was really only mostly interesting for his death scene. It is kinda telling he is surrounded by angry natives, roaring waterfalls and brutal nature, but the one thing that kills him is a bullet from the firearm of an English soldier. Anyway, now we are deep into the story here. The mission mentioned in the title is a reference to a key location of the movie, a place where South American natives are shown the privileges of Christianity, which is also good for them because they really could get away from the concept of physical abuse and slavery looming above them. This really is the main conflict. The entire film is almost like an investigation on how things will continue afterwards taking profit, superiority, human rights and more into account. Oh well, not really the entire movie. The first 30-45 minutes belong to De Niro (and also Irons actually) as he is a brutal slave trader who kills his own brother because the girl he likes prefers the latter over him. His path to redemption when joining the Christians is key to this movie and I thought he was really good. He is so strong when it comes to portryaing characters with a great deal of violence looming under the surface who still somehow have the desire to become honorable and kind citizens. The final development with how he returns to being a brute for the cause is also interesting. There was obviously no way he would survive the movie.

With Irons' character it surprised me a bit more. But these two have great on-screen chemistry anyway and made me genuinely enjoy this film at times. The subject is also highly interesting I think, not only because it is based considerably on actual events. Even I as somebody who does not care too much about religion got sucked in by the subject here, maybe not as much as by Scorsese's recent Japan-themed film, but still. By the way, these two are not too different in terms of tone and style I'd say, even if they play in completely different parts of the world. And fittingly Neeson is in both of them with like 30 years in-between. But lets not drift away now. This one we have here was not great, or only on some occasions, but pretty good overall and certainly interesting with all kinds of strong performances deep down to the supporting players. I am a bit surprised critics did not like it that much. It's also inferior to the other Joffé film I mentioned earlier, but only because that one is so amazing, not because this one here is weak or anything. Glad it got a great deal of awards recognition. Another thing I liked is that because of the connection to actual events, you could never be sure how this film would unfold and I liked that a lot, even if I somewhat expected an unhappy ending. But they sure played with our expectations with the official about to decide it all obviously being moved and it felt as if he could decide in our "heroes'" favor, but the explanation why he didn't in the end and why he went with them to see a different mission and tribe totally made sense. So lack of realism is not a problem at all for this really good film. I think unless you really hate historic movies about foreign cultures, then you should join Joffé in his ride from Vietnam to South America here. The film felt much shorter than it actually is and that is always a good sign. Positively recommended. Also of course almost a must-see for my fellow De Niro fans. Go for it! Oh yeah, I saw this as part of a film retrospective on Morricone. Yep he did the soundtrack here, probably not too expected except he worked with De Niro on quite a few occasions, but most people think of these classic westerns first when hearing his name and rightfully so. That's all, folks. As it is not an American production I'm glad this one got so much awards recognition, also in America. See it!

This is the story of atonement, the story of forgiveness, and the story of how new faith takes more drastic steps than the old faith. While it is difficult to believe Robert De Niro as a Spanish warrior, it comes to be easy as his transformation occurs. In the opening scene, he's catching natives of South America and turning them into slaves. He comes upon the Jesuit mission run by Jeremy Irons and makes it clear that he sees these natives as animals meant to serve the "civilized" European than be taught about Christianity. A sudden turn of events involving younger brother Aidan Quinn and his lover, Cheri Lunghi, turns De Niro into a shell of himself, and thanks to the head of the Jesuit ministry, he ends up right back where he started, in the South American jungles, aiding Irons in creating the mission. But his old cohorts become his enemies, determined to destroy the mission and make more profits with new slaves.

While Irons' missionary is a peaceful man, more prepared to die than fight, conflict soon erupts between the methods of the two men now on the same side. A young Liam Neeson plays another one of the missionaries, finding that he has a combination of both men's beliefs, and in the end, they fight two wars with their enemies: the spiritual war of God where death brings honor, and the violent war of man, where the point becomes to fight regardless of the outcome and to exhaust the enemy in a world that they aren't completely prepared for. Of course, there's gorgeous jungle photography where in the opening, the natives actually send a missionary to his death, floating over a huge waterfall on a cross. It's with the power of peace through a pure soul and simple musical cords that Irons managed to get through, and that musical theme is one that will sing in your heart long after the film is over.

While some of the casting made me cringe, particularly of a few of the enemies, I found that De Niro and irons really became their characters. De Niro's breakdown after a climb up a huge mountain range is extremely emotional, and as he is forgiven by the natives who obviously recognize him (but were lucky enough to escape), more emotions take over. The children, especially, are enchanting, and you'll not soon forget the one with the infectious laugh. The children become just as heroic as the adults, and if you are like me, you'll jeer at the fat obnoxious slave trader who refers to a singing native child as a trained monkey. When he keeps refusing to allow the missionaries to speak by his constant braying of "Your eminence!", I wanted to stand up in the middle of the movie theater and demand that he shut up. This is a film that will make you look at the evils of racism and slavery, and condemn the perpetrators to hell, unlike Irons, who obviously had the ability to forgive even under the most vile of circumstances.

I remember hearing about this film many times, especially because of the leading actor with the beard, I wondered if it a period war or something, but whatever the plot or concept I was definitely going to listen to the positive reviews and watch it, from Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe nominated director Roland Joffé (The Killing Fields, Captivity). Basically set in 1750's, Spanish Jesuit priest Father Gabriel (Golden Globe nominated Jeremy Irons) enters the South American jungle and builds a mission to convert a Guaraní community to Christianity to Christianity, they are aggressive to any strangers coming into their place, but they are captivated by the music that he plays them and allow him to stay. Mercenary Rodrigo Mendoza (Robert De Niro) made his money kidnapping the natives and selling them into slavery, including to Spanish Governor Cabeza (Chuck Low), but following finding his fiancée Carlotta (Cherie Lunghi) and his younger half-brother Felipe (Aidan Quinn) sleeping together and killing him in a duel he spirals into depression, but Father Gabriel offers him redemption, as penance he carries heavy armour over a waterfall, and he settles eventually into the Guaraní community. The mission becomes a place of sanctuary and education for the Guaraní, and Mendoza is moved to help, he takes a vow and over time becomes a true Jesuit guided by Father Gabriel and his colleague Father Fielding (Liam Neeson), but the missions being safe under Spanish law changes due to the Treaty of Madrid over the land in South America, the Portugese colonials will be able to enslave the natives, and former Jesuit from the Vatican, Papal emissary Cardinal Altamirano (BAFTA winning Ray McAnally), is sent to survey all missions and determine if they will be allowed to remain or not. Cardinal Altamirano is put under pressure by Spanish Governor Cabeza and Portuguese Governor Don Hontar (The Jury's Ronald Pickup), if he sides with the colonists the indigenous people will be made slaves, if he sides with the mission they will condemned by the Portugese and fracturing could happen within the European Catholic Church, eventually he chooses to close the mission, the Guaraní will be forced to leave, but Father Gabriel and Mendoza will defend the mission if the colonists and plantation owners will try and attack them. Father Gabriel is against military force because violence goes against his religious beliefs, but Mendoza breaks his vow and does indeed use military defence, and against the Father's wishes teaches the natives the art of war, and once again wields his sword, a Portugese and Spanish army do come to attack the mission, with Mendoza being fatally wounded, and Fielding sacrificing himself, and after trying to distract the army Gabriel, the rest of the priests and many of the Guaraní, including women and children, are gunned down, only a few escaping into the jungle. The final scene sees Cardinal Altamirano and Don Hontar meeting and acknowledging the wrongs of what has happened, they agree to work together rebuild the community, surviving young children in a canoe return to the massacre within the mission to salvage some belongings, and while they travel down the river the text of the film says that priests continue to fight for the rights of the indigenous. Also starring Sigifredo Ismare as Witch Doctor, Asuncion Ontiveros as Indian Chief, Daniel Berrigan as Sebastian, Monirak Sisowath as Ibaye and Tony Lawn as Father Provincial. Irons gives a great sincere performance as the religious trying to make positive change for the native people, De Niro is is an interesting choice as the man who makes up for his mistakes and is also passionate toward the innocent people, and young Neeson gets his good moments as well as the other priest trying to help. This is a simple enough story of religion trying to solve terrible woe for a tribes people, the music throughout the film is beautiful, the scenes in the jungle and other sights look wonderful, and the 18th Century period and events are captured well, I agree it may be flabby at small moments, but overall it is enjoyable and moving historical drama. It won the Oscar for Best Cinematography, and it was nominated for Best Picture, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing and Best Music for Ennio Morricone, it won the BAFTAs for Best Editing and Best Score, and it was nominated for Best Film, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Original Screenplay, Best Production Design, Best Sound and Best Special Visual Effects, and it won the Golden Globes for Best Screenplay and Best Original Score, and it was nominated for Best Motion Picture - Drama. Very good!

The Mission is a drama about the experiences of a Jesuit missionary in 18th century South America.It stars Robert De Niro and Jeremy Irons together with Ray McAnally, Aidan Quinn, Cherie Lunghi and Liam Neeson. It was written by Robert Bolt and directed by Roland Joffé.

The film examines the events surrounding the Treaty of Madrid in 1750, when Spain ceded part of South America to Portugal, and turns this episode into an allegory for struggles of Latin America. Two European forces are on hand to win the South American natives over to imperialist ways. The plunderers want to extract riches and slaves from the New World. The missionaries, on the other hand, want to convert the Indians to Christianity and win over their souls. Mendoza is an exploiter dabbling in the slave trade. But after he kills his brother Felipe in a fit of rage, he seeks redemption and calls upon the missionaries to assist him. After repeatedly climbing a cliff with a heavy weight as penance, Mendoza finds redemption and becomes a devout missionary at a settlement run by Gabriel. The missionaries want to promote a new society in which the natives will live together in peace with the Spanish and the Portuguese. But this concept frightens the royal governors, who would rather enslave the natives than encourage peaceful coexistence between the Europeans and the Indians. They order the mission to be burned to the ground. But this event causes a rift between Gabriel, who wants to pray and pursue peaceful resistance, and Mendoza, who wants to take up arms and fight the Europeans.

Featuring a majestic score by Ennio Morricone and lush Oscar-winning cinematography by Chris Menges,the Mission is shot through with piercing, haunting imagery, pictures of enduring imaginative force.Also,it is a rich and thought-provoking. It contains moving images of despair, penance, and redemption that are among the most evocative ever filmed.The performances are also great especially that of De Niro,who effective as a callous soldier who kills his own brother and then turns to a missionary to oversee his penance and conversion to the clergy. The narrative and dramatic forces at work in this movie should be more stirring and powerful than they are but unfortunately,it lacks doesn't as it is too detached for the viewer to feel concern with the events and characters in the story.But that doesn't take that much from it as it remains a brilliant and excellent film.

"The Mission" is without doubt a beautiful movie. The visual are absolutely stunning. Most credit for that has to go to Mother Nature. The music by Ennio Morricone is a real threat, it might very well be his best work till date in my opinion. However the movie is more style than substance. The movie is lacking the emotions it needed and the storytelling misses the point at times.

I wish more movies were made about the European slave trade. Movies have become an important medium of history telling over the last couple of years. These kind of stories are important and because of that more movies about it should be made. I however feel that this particular movie misses the point at times. The movie should be about the natives and their struggle against the Portugues slave traders and how they want to contain their way of live and habitat. The movie however focuses at times a bit too much on the Jesuits instead. The movie could had really been an emotionally powerful one if we the viewers actually got to care more about the natives. The movie tries to be emotional but fails because the story is brought wrongly.

Robert De Niro is really great in his role even though he doesn't get that much to do in this movie. It's a bit of a waste of a great actor. Main character of the movie is played by Jeremy Irons who also does more than great. Some smaller part are played by Liam Neeson and Aidan Quinn. To be honest I wouldn't call Quinn's appearance anything more than just a cameo.

I have some mixed feelings about this movie. The first- and middle part of the movie were really good and powerful however in the last 30 minutes of the movie the story concentrates on how the natives with the help of some of the Jesuits fight back against the Portogues. The first and middle halve of the movie mainly concentrated on how peaceful and beautiful the world of the natives was, it was 'On Earth As It Is In Heaven', so when the natives suddenly decide to pick up their weapons and go to battle, suddenly all of the respect and emotional bond that was build up in the first- and middle part of the movie is gone. Another example of how the storytelling of the movie is flawed. If the story was brought in a better way I would perhaps had been more shocked and saddened by the fact that the natives got slaughters along with the Jesuits. Don't get me wrong I liked the ending but it just didn't blend in very well with the rest of the movie.

Still I rate this movie highly for the following reason. I judge this movie as a movie not as a history lesson, which it really could had been. As a movie it is good, despite its at times flawed storytelling. The visuals are really what makes "The Mission" an unforgettable and highly recommendable movie. The movie might not be as powerful but it's still interesting to watch.

8/10

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Goldcrest Films were the most remarkable cinematic phenomenon of the eighties. They were responsible for a string of films- "Chariots of Fire", "Gandhi", "Local Hero", "The Killing Fields", "Hope and Glory"- which not only rank among the greatest ever British films but were also much admired internationally. "Chariots of Fire" and "Gandhi" both won "Best Picture" Oscars, and several of their other films were nominated, including "The Mission".

The film did not, however, perform well at the box office; possibly its theme, the Guarani War of the 1750s, was too remote to appeal to the average cinema-goer. Set in what is today Paraguay and the adjoining areas of Brazil and Argentina, it tells the story of Father Gabriel, a Spanish Jesuit, who enters the jungle to build a mission and convert the local Guaraní Indians to Christianity. The Jesuit missions of this area were largely autonomous of the Spanish state and provided the Indians some protection against Portuguese slave-traders. Gabriel is joined in his work by Rodrigo Mendoza, a former mercenary and slave-trader who has repented and become a Christian after killing his brother in a quarrel over a woman. Eventually, Mendoza becomes a Jesuit himself.

The crisis comes when the Jesuit missions, which under Spanish rule enjoyed some protection, are handed over to the Portuguese under the terms of the Treaty of Madrid. A Papal emissary, Cardinal Altamirano, is sent to determine whether the missions should continue to enjoy their autonomy under Portuguese rule, or whether they should be suppressed, which will allow the new colonial masters to enslave the Guaraní. The King of Portugal, Joseph I, has come under the influence of his anti-clerical favourite, the Marquis of Pombal, who is threatening to expel the Jesuits from Portugal itself, and Altamirano believes that such an outcome can be avoided if he permits the suppression of their missions in South America.

The film is notable for its sympathetic treatment of Christianity, and poses the question "how should Christians respond to evil?" It does not provide an easy answer, because there is no easy answer to this question. (The script was written by Robert Bolt, author of "A Man for All Seasons" which asks the same question in slightly different terms). The two main characters, Gabriel and Mendoza, symbolise two possible responses, Gabriel representing Christian pacifism and Mendoza the concept of the "just war". Mendoza the former slaver has come to detest slavery with all the zeal of the convert, and when the Portuguese send soldiers to destroy the mission he uses his military experience to lead the Guaraní in a war of resistance. Gabriel detests slavery as much as Mendoza, but he also detests war and violence, which he sees as the negation of all he has ever worked for, and refuses to fight the invaders, trying to defend the community by nonviolent means.

Altamirano represents a third possible response, that of collaboration. As played by Ray McAnally, he is by no means an evil man, despite the part he plays in the destruction of the missions. He is sincerely devout, and can appreciate the worth of what Gabriel and the Jesuits are trying to do in Paraguay. His dilemma is similar to that facing many in Nazi-occupied Europe; does one collaborate with evildoers, in the hope that one can thereby mitigate their evil, or does one actively oppose them, with the risk that this might provoke them to commit even more wicked acts? Altamirano's decision is wrong, especially as the Jesuits were indeed to be expelled from Portugal about a decade after the events shown in this film, but that does not necessarily mean that the thought-processes that led him to that decision were all base ones.

This was the second film to be directed by Roland Joffé, the first being "The Killing Fields" (also for Goldcrest). In the mid-eighties he was regarded as one of the brightest talents in the British cinema, and these two films show why. The British film industry is sometimes accused of shying away from the darker side of life, and it can certainly sometimes be parochial in its preference for films with a local setting, but these two films do not fit that stereotype at all; both are set in distant parts of the world, and both deal unsparingly with the subject of man's inhumanity. "The Mission", in particular, is a superb film, for a number of reasons.

Firstly it deals with a serious subject in an intelligent way. Secondly, there is a great musical score from Ennio Morricone, especially the haunting theme played to the Indians by Gabriel on his oboe. (Under the title "Gabriel's Oboe" it has become part of the Classical repertoire). Thirdly, there is the photography of the dramatic jungle scenery, which helped win the Academy Award for Best Cinematography. (The film was actually shot in Colombia; possibly political considerations precluded filming in Paraguay itself, then still under the rule of the Stroessner dictatorship). Fourthly, there is the power and drama of the action sequences.

Finally, Joffé was able to call upon some great acting, from McAnally, and from Jeremy Irons who succeeds well in conveying Gabriel's wisdom and goodness. Above all there is Robert De Niro. This is not often ranked among his greatest films, but in my view it should be. (Perhaps some of his admirers find it difficult to accept him as anything other than an American). Mendoza is a character who goes through considerable development in the course of the film, from brutal, swaggering soldier of fortune, to conscience-stricken penitent, to man of God, to desperate freedom fighter, and De Niro is never less than convincing in all of these four different incarnations. This should be ranked among the finest movies of the eighties. 9/10

Holding the prestigious fame of the Palme d'Or winner of 1986, THE MISSION to me is a structurally uneven piece whose only prerogatives are Morricone's intriguing score and DP Chris Menges' picturesque shots (deserve his Oscar winning).

I don't know what the accuracy between the film and the historical event, the film failed to impress me neither in a religious aspect, nor in its moral level. I could not totally commit myself into the narrative, judging by De Niro's character Rodrigo, since killing his brother during an unexpected duel, until the redemption in the midway, the performance is paper-thin and maybe director Roland Joffé didn't intend to dig into a deeper ground to elaborate on his character, which is a common measurement here, only Ray McAnally survives as the Cardinal Aktanurabo, not an arresting role, but the late McAnally owns every scene he presents. Another leader Jeremy Irons a (the iper-pious and righteous Father Gabriel), has also been hobbled by the mindless neglects, but he excels De Niro by a notch in the course of their restrained two- hander screen-time. Furthermore, I found it rather weird of the prolonged close-ups on Rodrigo's eyes before his ultimate demise (only after witnessing Father Gabriel being dispatched, he was able to close his intrepid eyes), maybe it is intentionally edited, but I could not figure it out the motivation.

I should have rated this film a bit higher than a 5/10, but I must be loyal to my true feelings, the slaughter in the latter film is a pre-AVATOR holocaust (except one waterfall scene, reminds of Meryl Streep in THE RIVER WILD 1994), maybe the influence of a tragedy is a two-edged sword, in my case, all I receive is the negative energy, and renders a feeling of factitious propaganda for the Church and the Jesuits. So, bite me if you disagree.

Missionaries, slave traders, and colonizers mingle in this dishonest, naive and simplistic tale, in which a band of monks defend Native Indians from marauding Europeans in 18th Century South America.

The film oozes the kind of bourgeois anger of Oliver Stone, beating us over the head with "messages" and placating us with nice cinematography, romantic primitivism and cosy Christianity.

The film was produced by David Puttnam, a guy who specializes in making films which pretend to say the right thing (indictments of injustices), but actually say the reverse. Take "Chariots of Fire", a film about social biases and anti-Semitism which everyone remembers instead for hunky, blonde haired runners running majestically in slow motion. Puttnam's films consistently seem to say the right things, whilst actually reinforcing something else, and so it's no surprise that "The Mission" bashes Colonialism, but not if it's done right and not if we forget that European religious enterprise was just as guilty as Portugal, France, Spain and England's economic apparatus in spreading disease, havoc, death, famine and political self renunciation.

Some complain that the film shows little interest in the Indians and focuses instead on three Christian martyrs, but such is the norm. What's really annoying is the way the villains of this picture sanction the overthrowing of missions and tribes whilst constantly professing, through various monologues and conversations, that they knew better. That they knew what they were doing was wrong and would have ramifications.

All bad historical message movies do this, neglecting to "show" the causes of history/behaviour "at the time" in favour for characters who impossibly possess a very modern vantage point which allows for false reflections and reconciliation. It's the Ridley Scott, Stephen Spielberg, Edward Zwick style of history.

Still, if one is willing to bathe in pretty signs and sounds, be distracted by money (ie expensive location photography) and switch off one's brain, there are several good things on display. Jeremy Irons and Liam Neeson play a pair of affecting Jesuit priests, Robert De Niro at times looks handsome (this is where he stopped acting), Ennio Morricone's score is divine and the film possesses 3 sublime scenes. These three scenes are worth suffering through the film.

6.5/10 – Worth one viewing. See Pontecorvo's "Burn!" instead.