Molokai: The Story Of Father Damien
by Paul Cox
Our Price: $19.99
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Buy Used: from $9.31 (click here)
Category: DVD
See more DVD details
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
DVD details
Actor: Chris Haywood, David Wenham, Derek Jacobi, Jan Decleir, Kate CeberanoDirector: Paul Cox
Brand: Triumph
Producer: Alex Verbaere
Producer: Andy Howard
Producer: Anton Kramer
Producer: Grietje Lammertyn
Producer: John Briley
Writer: John Briley
Writer: Hilde Eynikel
Audio: English (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 113 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-02-14
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Vision Video
DVD Reviews of Molokai: The Story Of Father Damien
DVD Review: A great film, but they can't get the DVD right
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a great film, which has been reviewed favorably by most others. But the DVD versions leave something to be desired.
The film was made in 1999. The first DVD version, by A-PIX Entertainment, had the film in Letterbox wide screen 2:35. There were Spanish subtitles, which is good. But there were no English subtitles, which neglected the hearing impaired viewers.
The DVD was done over in 2008, by Gateway Films. The scenes were divided up differently, which is okay. And the Spanish subtitles were replaced by English ones. Maybe they could have had both. But the worst part is the switch from Letterbox to Full Frame.
In one early scene, about 6 minutes into the film, a group of priests are sitting in a church listening to their bishop. The Letterbox version shows five priests in the first row: three on one side of the aisle, and two on the other. The Full Frame version shows two priests on one side, and one and a half on the other.
Why is there still an excuse to do Full Frame DVDs? What they did in an insult to the cinematography and integrity of the film. If you can find it, get the earlier Letterbox version, even without the English subtitiles.
DVD Review: Wonderful film on this servant of God
Summary: 5 Stars
Beautiful scenery and great cast. I'm happy that this film was made to shed light on this man of faith who stepped out to love and serve others. Inspiring.DVD Review: Molokai and the life of Father Damien comes alive in film
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie is so well done I feel I am viewing the Akashic Records of the lives of Father Damien, the community of lepers on Molokai, the Hawaiian royal family, people from the government and the Catholic church. Inspiring and beautiful, Father Damien becomes to me a mentor of the Spirit and a heart to emulate. Janet OrionDVD Review: Molokai; The story of Father Damien
Summary: 5 Stars
Just a super movie about Fr. Damien's life on the leper colony and all the good he did and what he had to endure before catching the desease himself. I highly recommend this movie, an excellent production and well directed.DVD Review: Do what your heart tells you to do...
Summary: 5 Stars
"Molokai" is not so much about Father Damian, as it is about the importance of compassion towards those, who find themselves as "unfortunates" through no fault of their own. That Father Damian defied his superiors in defense of the lepers sent to the then remote island colony on Molokai, says volumes about the man's convictions on their account. He spent years among them, improving their standard of living (which was best described as "squalor", before his arrival), and bringing many into the fold of Christianity, before succumbing to the disease himself.
Sam Neil, Peter O'Toole and Kris Kristofferson give fine performances. It is David Wenham, however, that deserves special mention. His performances in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy were good, but hardly an indicator of his abilities. In "Molokai", his performance as Father Damian is superb! He brings this most special of men to vivid life!!
This film is a fitting tribute to a man who found humility among the stricken, to be the most powerful of his Lord's gifts.
Description of Molokai: The Story Of Father Damien
To deal with the leprosy problem in the Hawaiian Islands in 1872, sufferers were relentlessly exiled to Molokai, a barren isle off the coast. There they lived in miserable surroundings, abandoned by the outside world. To alleviate their fate, Father Damien was the first priest to go to Molokai. His bishop's last words were that "he must not touch anyone."Little by little, Damien earned the trust of the lepers, and eventually, his appeals for nuns and supplies resonated throughout the world, much to the displeasure of his superiors.
Even when Damien got sick himself, his energy did not abate, and he carried on working for the well-being of his "fellow lepers" to the end. When he crumbled during Mass, he was taken to his own hospital to die. All the residents gathered at the entrance to pray for their Father...
DVD FEATURES:
Languages: English
Subtitles: English **NO SPANISH AVAILABLE**
Viewing Format: Fullscreen
Sound:
Bonus Material:
Chapter titles for easy scene access
-Theatrical trailer and "The Making of Molokai"
-Biographical information on leading actors
This biography of Father Damien, the Catholic priest who in 1873 volunteered for service on the eponymous Hawaiian leper colony, doesn't hesitate to idolize its subject, and why should it? For 15 years Damien ministered almost single-handedly to the quarantined community, supplying what medication he could procure while struggling against the red tape from organizations (religious and governmental) that would rather have forgotten all about the hundreds of people slowly dying in primitive conditions. He won some battles and lost others, finally succumbing to the disease himself in 1888. The film can't overcome the inherent weaknesses of projects such as this: high officials given to improbable speeches recapping the relevant historical events for us, a certain formlessness generated by skipping through the years and only hitting the high points, stock bureaucratic villains whose motives are never fairly explored. On the other hand, screenwriter John Briley has an Oscar on his shelf for Gandhi, so he knows how to string the lessons together and make them go down smoothly.
The earnestness of the project no doubt led to the who's-who supporting cast (Sam Neill, Derek Jacobi, Peter O'Toole, Leo McKern) (oh yes, and Kris Kristofferson), but it is David Wenham who must carry the film as Damien, which he does well enough--not spectacularly but with a touching humility not above a tetchy self-righteousness. Director Paul Cox was an inspired choice, however, bringing to the project his patient fascination with emotions at their most subtle and restrained; as a result, Molokai's low-key sense of conflict, often a fatal flaw in similar movies, becomes the film's saving grace, a manifestation of its subject's quiet, persistent faith. --Bruce Reid
General DVDs
DVD Video
- Action & Adventure
- African American Cinema
- Animation
- Anime & Manga
- Art House & International
- Classics
- Comedy
- Cult Movies
- Documentary
- Drama
- Educational
- Fitness & Yoga
- Gay & Lesbian
- Horror
- Kids & Family
- Military & War
- Music Video & Concerts
- Musicals & Performing Arts
- Mystery & Suspense
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Special Interests
- Sports
- Television
- Westerns
Bestsellers in General DVDs
Frost/ NixonUniversal; Release date: 2009-04-21; DVD
Best price: $11.39
Price in other shops:
Lost in AustenImage Entertainment; Release date: 2009-04-14; DVD
Best price: $14.98
Price in other shops:
AustraliaTwentieth Century Fox; Release date: 2009-03-03; DVD
Best price: $12.99
Price in other shops:
DoubtRelease date: 2009-04-07; DVD
Best price: $14.43
Price in other shops:
True Blood: The Complete First Season (HBO Series)Release date: 2009-05-19; DVD
Best price: $38.99
Price in other shops:
FireproofSony; Release date: 2009-01-27; DVD
Best price: $8.50
Price in other shops:
The ReaderGenius; Release date: 2009-04-14; DVD
Best price: $12.30
Price in other shops:
The WrestlerTwentieth Century Fox; Release date: 2009-04-21; DVD
Best price: $11.49
Price in other shops:
Marley and Me (Single-Disc Edition)Twentieth Century Fox; Release date: 2009-03-31; DVD
Best price: $10.55
Price in other shops:
Slumdog MillionaireTwentieth Century Fox; Release date: 2009-03-31; DVD
Best price: $10.40
Price in other shops:
Similar DVDs, VHS Video, Audio CDs
Maria GorettiRelease date: 2007-10-03; DVD
Best price: $19.88
Price in other shops:
St. John Bosco: Mission to LoveRelease date: 2007-02-20; DVD
Best price: $20.90
Price in other shops:
Saint RitaRelease date: 2007-02-20; DVD
Best price: $20.98
Price in other shops:
Francis of AssisiRelease date: 2005-02-22; DVD
Best price: $6.98
Price in other shops:
A Man for All Seasons (Special Edition)Sony; Release date: 2007-02-20; DVD
Best price: $7.75
Price in other shops:
No Footprints in the Sand - A Memoir of Kalaupapaby Henry Kalalahilimoku Nalaielua, Sally-Jo Keala-o-anuenue Bowman
Watermark Publishing; Published: 2006-10-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.36
Price in other shops:
The Song of BernadetteRelease date: 2003-06-03; DVD
Best price: $6.88
Price in other shops:
Holy Man: Father Damien of Molokaiby Gavan Daws
University of Hawaii Press; Published: 1989-02-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.00
Price in other shops:
Mother TeresaTwentieth Century Fox; Release date: 2006-06-13; DVD
Best price: $6.75
Price in other shops:
The Father Damien Story - An Uncommon KindnessALLUMINATION FILM WORKS LLC; Release date: 2006-07-25; DVD
Best price: $10.47
Price in other shops: