Comwayon A Disappointing Continuation

Teddie Blake The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Roy Hart If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Cristal The movie really just wants to entertain people.

Que no me toque un alto delante The screenplay combines local aspects of life and traditions of Laos, with a way of telling which makes it universal. The story opens in a very pleasant way, and continues to evolve throughout the film. Give it up for the boy Disamoe. He was chosen for this movie as a child of the street, without acting training. Excels in the paper. The work is very surprising, showing a display of acting abilities that promises much (if we ever get to see him again). The girl is also fine. These films, a priori,are great, because they let us spy places and realities unknown to us: in this case Laos, a place not only devastated by poverty, but by the legacy of war. A direction and a highly polished, at times almost poetic photograph, which embellishes the horrors being shown. The director is showing various aspects of the life of the "not favored" in this country, trying to maintain a balance between drama and very harsh situations on the one hand, and moments of laughter, or lightened on the other. I must say that it has perhaps predictable moments, commonplaces and more corny ones, but I think maybe were attempts to avoid falling into melodrama and total tragedy that could have been. The director could have opted for something more authentic, and not so standard. I think that in that difficulty lies the reason because this has not become a great movie; despite which it still is worth seeing. (Detail: amazing "James Brown" character) For an amazing blog, visit: quenometoque.wix.com/unaltodelante

FilmCriticLalitRao A viewer would do tremendous justice to "The Rocket" by describing it as a film loaded with joyful entertainment albeit coupled with an earnest message. The film begins in a shocking manner as viewers are shown how during a delivery of twins, one of the baby dies. At a latter stage, the boy who has survived death is censured for having taken his mother's life in a freak accident. This incident points to numerous illogical acts of superstitions which continue to prevail in many countries. According to them, a person is directly or indirectly responsible for the life or the death of another person. 'The Rocket' starts as a drama but quickly transforms itself into a comedy with a message. It makes a lot of sense to viewers who want to know about the handling of serious issues in films as one gets a frank view of what happens when people are displaced due to the construction of dams. What makes "The Rocket" special for adults is that this film is able to strike a perfect chord with young children and teenage viewers.It shows them why the world of children is highly unpredictable as it cannot be fully understood by adults.

Roland E. Zwick An unlikely underdog-story from Australia, "The Rocket" showcases the struggles of a Laotian family as they go in search of a new home after the construction of a dam forces them to abandon their native village, a situation that is emblematic of how indigenous people the world over are callously pushed aside to make way for an impersonal modern world.Young Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe), the central character in the story, comes from a culture that believes that twins are by their very nature either good or evil, and since Ahlo is himself a surviving twin (his brother having been stillborn), the family - his mild-mannered father and cantankerous, superstitious grandmother - can't quite decide whether he's a good luck charm or a bad luck charm, though they suspect he is probably the latter. This puts Ahlo in the rather awkward position of feeling like every time some calamity befalls the family, he is somehow indirectly responsible for it. The three travelers are accompanied by an elderly Laotian who, as a child, fought on the side of the Americans during the war and who's so obsessed with James Brown that he dresses like him and carries his recordings with him wherever he goes, and his feisty little niece who quickly becomes Ahlo's confidante and companion on the journey. The crux of the plot is Ahlo's attempts to win a cash prize for the best homemade rocket built out of the many un-detonated explosives that lie strewn across the countryside, a sad and painful remnant of the long-ago war that, all these years later, continues to cast an indomitable shadow over the region. It's a contest with its roots planted partly in science and partly in traditional superstition, since the goal is to appease the gods by seeding the clouds in the hope of making it rain.Improbable as it is at times, the movie demonstrates that, even among the have-nots in this world, there is often still a caste system designed to keep a person from advancing in life, but that with a little ingenuity, determination and a few handy resources, it's hard to keep an optimistic and spirited boy down.

bridon-792-528635 Wonderful documentary style story. Scenes still have great impact on me. The casual acting styles of the children were captivating & led to credence all the way through the film. Confronting issues & imagery were simply presented without sentimental or 'fluffy' enhancement. The stories of each character were presented so realistically by apparently unsophisticated actors, with the cinematography displaying facial & scenic imagery so beautifully & again simply, so as to encourage the feel of realism & the documentary style. Would expect more awards to be coming this films way. Started out as a 'bookclub' task & left me with a lifelong impact.