Wow, another excellent family film that has received low ratings from many reviewers here - I just don't get it. Fly Away Home is a beautiful story, filled with realistic emotion and incredible views of Canada and the geese.Jeff Daniel's portrayal of the eccentric father is smooth and realistic to the point that you might feel like you could run into him during a drive in the country. Anna Paquin tugs at your heartstrings and our family was cheering her on throughout the movie.Fly Away Home is a wholesome and entertaining family experience that we have watched several times - this says a lot since we rarely all agree on viewing the same film together twice.

Sctmpir's review nails this film, which celebrates a young female character with immense richness, complexity even, and grace. I think that the treatment of women in this work is among the most finely nuanced and intelligent I have ever seen in any film.Carroll Ballard, who directed the gracious and almost unbearably beautiful "Wind" as well as "The Black Stallion", "Duma", and "Never Cry Wolf"--all films that have an almost sentimental tone but a tone really closer to romantic in the classic Victorian sense of awe and wonder at life itself—controls every aspect of the narrative. This film might seem close to but is never saccharine. It is about wonder in the sense of awe.Anna Paquin exhibits brilliance as an adolescent actor that overwhelms me, in part, because there is never anything trite or coquettish that often mares the role many fine young actresses play. The role here required immense transparency, poise, and nuance.Dana Delaney has the same poise, apparent simplicity, attention to nuance and understatement as Ms. Paquin. No actor is better than Jeff Daniels is when he expresses understatement and subtly—remember him, for example, in "Pleasantville" and "Purple Rose of Cairo". Tim Kerry is a great boon to the film but everyone seems outstanding to me.Caleb Deschane is a master of magic hour cinematography, which works exceptionally well here. He did, for example, "The Right Stuff" with Philip Kaufman directing, "The Passion of the Christ" with Mel Gibson directing, "A Woman Under the Influence" with John Cassavetes, and "Being There" with Hal Ashby. He also directed the thoughtful film "Caruso". The attention to detail in this movie amazes me. There is not a bad frame anywhere in the film. That, of course, is in part the work of the editor Nicholas Smith.Music by Mark Isham is a tad dramatic but still lovely. Mr. Isham is one of the most productive of film composers.And the airplanes are terrific. The aerial images alone overwhelm me and recall the imagery from "Wind", one of my favourite action films. The flight though Baltimore alone is worth the price of admission and it one of utter majesty. One plane was the one used in the true story behind the work.As usual, I am not up to doing this fine work credit that it earns. I want to own a copy of it.I rate it ten because I judge films on their individual merits, not necessarily in comparison with other works.

I never expected Fly Away Home to be so good, it is a truly extraordinary, poignant and completely lovable family film. Who cares if it starts off slowly? There is so much to redeem this movie, that the pros completely outweigh the minor con.Fly Away is exquisitely filmed, with breathtaking settings and stunning cinematography. I do think the the film's overall look is its main merit, as well as the truly lovely music score. The script is beautiful, more poignant above all else. And I almost forgot to mention the heartwarming story.I thought also the performances were outstanding. Jeff Daniels is a revelation as the father, in one of his best performances, and Anna Paquin is just superb in the title role. Of course the scene stealers are the adorable baby geese, but Paquin's chemistry with them, so motherly she was, reduced me to tears on several occasions.This movie shouldn't be dismissed as an overly sentimental, bittersweet bit of eye candy. It is to me and my entire family, a truly beautiful, well meaning and poignant film for the entire family to treasure for a very long time. I am 17, and I really can't think of anything else to add other than a 10/10. (one of the easiest perfect scores I have given recently) Bethany Cox

I just finished watching "Fly away Home" on youtube and I had forgotten how sweet the film was not the disgustingly sweet stuff you get with some films,but genuinely sweet and poignant.Anna Paquin plays Amy Alden a young girl who lost her mother and goes to live with her Dad played by Jeff Daniels from "Dumb and Dumber" and "Because of Winn Dixie". She hatches and raises a flock a geese all by herself. The soundtrack is excellent and the song "1000 Miles" is one of the best songs I have heard in a movie . At times I was tearing up,this film is based on a true story,but it is in no way a boring documentary. When Amy and her father lead the geese south is one of the best parts of the movie . The Canadian scenery is excellent .All in all this is a very good film