Be prepared, this movie is about 95% dialogue free. What little there is, is in Chinese or Japanese. The remaining sounds are of the beautifully filmed backdrop, the jungle and all its encompassing wildlife. Oh, I almost forgot the gunfire in the distance. Even though there is minimal talking, as another reviewer mentioned, this film is best viewed at night in a dark room with the volume nice and loud. This way you really feel as though you're a part of what's taking place with the sounds of the jungle encompassing you, if you have a nice home theater set-up. Having taken place in 1942, I was expecting a "period film", but this really could have taken place anytime since then. This film was nothing like I expected but I was in no way disappointed. It was beautifully filmed, acted and leaves you thinking. I highly recommend it to anyone!

When I read about CANOPY I thought it sounded decent: Australian pilot, shot down in the fetid jungles of Singapore and trying to avoid Japanese squads on the hunt for prey. The sweaty, claustrophobic confines of the jungle sounded very AGUIRRE-esque to me and if the film was slow, then so what? Herzog's films are slow and yet they're also exceptionally crafted and beautiful to boot which is why they're my favourites.Sadly, CANOPY turns out to be an absolutely awful picture and one of the most boring films I've ever seen. I can forgive films for being cheesy or silly but to be dull is the cardinal sin I can't ignore. NOTHING happens in this film from beginning to end: there's no dialogue, no incident, no drama, nothing. Just characters wandering around or sitting looking at trees.Now, the film could still have been saved had it had exceptional cinematography to bring the life the sights and sounds of the jungle. It doesn't. It looks like this was made by amateurs, shooting in a single location and pointing the camera in different directions each time in order to get a sense of the jungle expanse. What we get is a film which relies on a sound effects team to insert noises of planes, bombing, and fighting without ever showing anything. It's so cheap it's a joke.

The main problem with this is the slow pace and the lack of emotional dynamics from the main actor.His facial expressions did not change much. Alternatively he might be talented but was just poorly directed here. My main problem: I could not even tell if he was clever or stupid - we are not given enough information about his personality. We need to know more, to know him, and empathize. I felt nothing much for him as a blank face is just not enough for me to invest my emotions into and then connect with a character. Had this character been a beautiful woman, then that might have helped as then I could at least have imagined loving her, and we can forgive those that we love more easily!There are lots of meditative contemplative long slow shots in the film, in themselves beautiful paintings. But what was missing was an effective intensity of any relevant human condition to contemplate during these times; perhaps the philosophy of the struggle that the characters are having.The first few minutes of the film were great, setting up the possibility of a great journey, which for me never gathered momentum.The Chinese actor does a better job and the sound track is solid in the film.

Before I watch a movie I look at the plot summary and read a few reviews. There are a some very negative reviews of this movie here on IMDb and I am left wondering why these people watched the movie? A few seemed to think there should be more fighting and sophisticated effects. Some seemed to think there should have been a stronger story line. This is not that kind of movie folks. This is the kind of movie that requires the viewer to engage and think about the human condition. If you want banging and smashing action or a fairy tale story don't bother watching this movie. If your attention span is just long enough to manage handfuls of popcorn don't watch this movie. If you want to be engaged in a thought process then you are in for a treat. I was reminded very much of the classic war movie "Hell in the Pacific" as I watched. Here the two characters are comrades rather than adversaries but there are similarities in the lack of a common language and the reliance on strong visual images. I don't want to give away the plot or ending but without spoiling anything I can say the penultimate scene makes a very strong statement about how we remember the victims of a war. In summary people should watch movies according to their tastes. If you want big budget Hollywood action and a story don't bother with this movie, and moreover don't half watch it without concentrating and write a lambasting review. If you want something more existential and thought provoking, I recommend this movie to you.