Die vier Federn (2002)

Die vier Federn: Directed by Shekhar Kapur. With Wes Bentley, Mohamed Bouich, Campbell Brown, Daniel Caltagirone. A British officer resigns his post just before battle and subsequently receives four white feathers from his friends and fiancee as symbols of what they believe to be his cowardice.

“Iu0026#39;ve always been a fan of historically inspired epic movies and although Iu0026#39;m not a fan of costume dramau0026#39;s, I donu0026#39;t really care about the time period these movies are set in. This one has been set at the end of the 19th century, a time period that comes close to the one that I like most in the movies (1914-1950), but even movies set in medieval, Greek and Roman times I can enjoy…u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAs I already said, this movie has been set at the end of the 19th century, in 1898 to be more precise. When a British officer is about to be sent to Sudan to fight a war he doesnu0026#39;t approve of, he is seen as a coward. He has to resign his post, right before his regiment ships out to battle the rebels, and to make things even worse for him, he receives four white feathers from his friends and his fiancée. These feathers symbolize how they feel about him, they see him as a coward, but what they donu0026#39;t know is that he plans to go to Sudan anyway, undercover, so he can save his friends from a certain death and redeem his honor…u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe story certainly is interesting and offers an interesting approach to a story that has been told many times before. But what I liked even more than the story was the photography. Everything was portrayed in a very nice way, especially when they are in Sudan. Iu0026#39;m not saying that the part of the movie showing England isnu0026#39;t any good, but Iu0026#39;m not too much a fan of those Victorian costumes and habits. I prefer the dust and dirt from the desert and the battles in which good manors only come later and the true human nature gets the upper hand.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eEven though many people seem to hate this movie, I canu0026#39;t join them in their opinion. All actors did a nice job and even though it is perhaps true that they could have found a better actress than Kate Hudson to play the role of Ethne, it never bothered me in such a way that it spoiled all the rest of my fun. And about the historical accuracy I can be brief as well. It looked good enough to me to be believable. Perhaps there were some minor details that werenu0026#39;t right, but since Iu0026#39;m not too familiar with the time period shown in this movie, I certainly didnu0026#39;t notice them. Anyway, I liked what I saw and even though many people gave it a bad review, I certainly liked it for what it was: A very decent movie about honor, freedom, friendship,… I know that these words are too often abused in many Hollywood movies, but this time it worked for me and thatu0026#39;s why I give this movie a 7.5/10.”