Nothing short of a masterpiece when it comes to scenery and photo. Not so much the film it self. The editing is really poor, and the script is copied from the movie "Braveheart" But the photo..! Filminglocation is "LOTR-country" in daytime-mode, which is quit proper for this movie. It makes it easy to get those magnificent scenes. Maori-conflicts whit intruding westerners are not rare in films, but this one has an unique touch to it. It takes place in the 19'th century, and feels genuine at first glance. Troubles comes first in editing, and I cant help thinking this movie deserves a better editing some day. This movie on 1080-upscaling is a wet dream for those who rate a movie by its appearance. Those of us who doesn't can still appreciate it thanks to just that.

Set in the mid 1800's when the British is clearing New Zealand outback wilderness to establish colonies. The daughter of a British army surgeon, Sarah(Samantha Morton), falls in love with the son of one of the Maori leaders. The Maori is an indigenous tribe and a dangerous people for the Europeans to deal with. By the time Sarah's child, which she calls "Boy", is born, his father is dead. By the age of six, "Boy" is kidnapped by his father's family and Sarah will begin her search for him with a man(Kiefer Sutherland),who is deeply in love with her.Two-time Oscar nominee Morton is definitely the star of this movie. Sutherland is a total waste. Also starring are: Cliff Curtis, Stephen Rea, Temuera Morrison and David Rawiri Pene. This movie is rated R for some sexual content and violent battle scenes. I find the title RIVER QUEEN very misleading and the DVD cover with Sutherland only and making you believe he is the leading star should be a crime.

excellent movie ! a great story that keeps you riveted in your seat ! i also enjoyed the great cinematography of the New Zealand country , and the original New Zealand people . as the story follows an Irish woman who falls in love with and becomes pregnant by a native man ,the viewer is absorbed in the drama of the struggle of two mighty human civilizations . i think the scene where the native chieftain is making love to his newly acquired beautiful young wife while his tribe is engaged in a bloody battle against the European settlers is pregnant with symbolism .also when the Irish woman sneaks out of her home with her fellow-countryman to be with the brother of her dead boyfriend and the adopted father of her son only to come back to find that her Irish friend has died , i think that was an unexpected twist in the woman's story ,i thought she would eventually marry her Irish friend especially after she appeared to "lose" her son again, after finding him, to the savage ways of his father's people . i think overall, it was a great watch .I strongly recommend it .

Peter Thompson, on this morning's Sunday show, gave River Queen a very favorable review; the review's timing was perfect because last evening Diane and I watched this new Kiwi film and drove home with mixed feelings about what we had just seen.Thompson's reviews are usually spot-on for us but in this instance we are still not sure. Yes, Vincent Ward's story was superb: huge amounts of recognizable human drama, multidimensional characters, a gigantic historical background and everything framed by New Zealand's natural beauty. Vincent's direction accentuated each of these elements; he made great use of the land's physical beauty as well as the beauty and uniqueness of the individual Maori people. This last comment will take on meaning with the watching of the film because certain Maori characteristics play a huge visual as well as plot role in the film-perhaps unexpectedly for some viewers more than others. Alun Bollinger's cinematography beautifully captures Ward's shot selection; it is impossible to leave the theater and not have been captivated by the physical beauty of the New Zealand landscape.I think the question must be asked: If I thought the film was so good, why did I only give it a rating of eight? The answer goes to the heart of why Diane and I were both uncomfortable with this superficially great film and that lies in the script, the third leg of Vincent's stool. We both thought the script was overly choppy; there were too many small pieces of story stitched together. I thought the film was too jumpy and that resulted in my concentration moving too quickly from one scene to another. I suppose that is just a matter of cinematic taste particular to one person and should not be used to paint an entire film.River Queen is definitely worth seeing. The subject matter alone is worth the effort, with excellent acting by all concerned and magnificent scenery beautifully captured in thee film. The film must indeed be judged highly.