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Great Expectations (1998)

It's not love, but it is a bind.

A review by Mike Shea   Movie Rating: ( * * * * · )    DVD Rating: ( * * · · · )

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To me, this is a true love story. The fundmental lesson of the story is that love is pain, a philosophy I personally subscribe to. I have already gone over the plot in the review of the original version which stays pretty much the same in this one so I won't go too deep into it. Gwyneth Paltrow plays Estella, a weapon designed by a heartbroken old women to destroy the lives of men. She will turn on the heat just to the point where men will kill for her and then walk away. The story follows the live of Finn, a boy who we later find out is the training partner to the deadly Estelle. He is the mouse that the boa sharpens it's teeth on. He spends his whole life trying to get her, only to lose her just when he thinks he has succeeded. To me the story is perfect with only some slightly uncomfortable scenes surrounding a particular subplot with Finn and his benefactor (De Niro). The emotion is fast paced and very intense. What really brought this movie to a higher level was one particular scene at chapter 16. This is truly the apex of the movie and it does the job with power to spare. The DVD was pretty lame with a non 16x9 enhanced picture but an excellent 5.1 Dolby Digital soundtrack. There were no extras of worth. Overall, an excellent view of love through a different scenario and not too bad a remake of the Dickens classic.This is a true Mike Shea love story. The fundmental lesson of the story is that love is pain, a philosophy I personally subscribe to. I have already gone over the plot in the review of the original version which stays pretty much the same in this one so I won't go too deep into it. Gwyneth Paltrow plays Estella, a weapon designed by a heartbroken old women to destroy the lives of men. She will turn on the heat just to the point where men will kill for her and then walk away. The story follows the live of Finn, a boy who we later find out is the training partner to the deadly Estelle. He is the mouse that the boa sharpens it's teeth on. He spends his whole life trying to get her, only to lose her just when he thinks he has succeeded. To me the story is perfect with only some slightly uncomfortable scenes surrounding a particular subplot with Finn and his benefactor (De Niro). The emotion is fast paced and very intense. What really brought this movie to a higher level was one particular scene at chapter 16. This is truly the apex of the movie and it does the job with power to spare. The DVD was pretty lame with a non 16x9 enhanced picture but an excellent 5.1 Dolby Digital soundtrack. There were no extras of worth. Overall, an excellent view of love through a different scenario and not too bad a remake of the Dickens classic.