Cheap The Power of One (DVD) (Armin Mueller-Stahl) (John G. Avildsen) Price

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Customer Reviews of The Power of One

This movie shows some of the truest beauty of Southern Africa, the stunningly beautiful scenes of PK and Doc canoeing on the river with elephants bathing nearby. The score only adds to the movie with some of the most breathtakingly beautiful African music I have heard in a long time. Each time I hear it, it takes me back... I really think that it accurately captures the feeling of Africa.

The movie may not follow the book, but that is not the point. So the movie is different from the book, no problem. The movie is aiming at showing racism for the ugly beast that it is and showing how just one person can really make a difference. Being different from the book is not a bad thing in this case, as the movie is powerful nonetheless.

This is one of my favorite movies and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

doesn't match the book
I first saw this film on TV at the age of 15 and at the time, I thought that it was fantastic. I think that I felt this way because I knew "absoludle" nothing about apartheid (and because I had yet to read the novel "The Power of One"). A few years later, i was given the opportunity to read the novel by Bryce Courtenay for summer reading at school. After reading the novel, I was blown away. It made the movie seem trite and I ended up feeling upset at the changes that the filmmakers made. One of the worst errors: In the book Peekay has no real love interest. The girl inserted in the movie served to take the place of Peekay's Jewish best friend Morrie; the film would have been a million times better showing that relationship rather than Peekay's relationship with this girl that seemed to have no basis in the original plot (to make matters worse, she was really annoying in the movie). In addition to this adjustment, the filmmakers stopped the movie early, not totally completing Peekay's power of one journey.

My opinion of the film has changed since reading the novel. I think that this would be a great film for people to see if they HAVE NOT read the book, but if they have it will just be a disappointment.

So you must be wondering why I gave this film 3 stars instead of 1. Well, #1 despite the filmmaker's total disregard for Courtenay's original plot, there was a fantastic African performance towards the middle of the film that matches exactly how I saw it in my mind while reading the book. #2 Morgan Freeman played a great Geel Piet and #3 Without this movie, I would have never given the book a chance and for that I am very greatful.

If you've read the book don't bother with the movie.
If you haven't, rent/watch the movie and then BUY the book instead.

If you haven't read the book. . .
this is an entertaining film. I'd recommend it for people looking for a "overcoming adversity" story. It's better for younger students than the book would be, too, since the violence is toned down. Like most books made into movies, however, this film is so different from the book that they are almost two stories with the same title set in South Africa.

I like using the movie when I teach the book, only because students are so unhappy with the movie and we can select the book scenes that SHOULD have been filmed instead.