After September 11th the world and more specifically, the USA has gained more respect for certain things we used to take for granted. One obvious service that we have certainly gained more respect for is the work that firefighters do day in and day out. Another profession that we have gained more respect for is the work of photojournalists and filmmakers willing to brave the elements and risk their lives to inform the public. Recent examples after September 11th is the Daniel Pearl tragedy and the filmmakers who made the "9/11" documentary that aired on television not long ago. The fate of a photojournalist is the topic explored in Elie Chouraqui's film starring Andie MacDowell, Harrison's Flowers.
A woman travels to the war-torn country of Yugoslavia to find her photojournalist for Newsweek husband after he's reported missing by wire reports. After he's later reported to be dead the faithful wife can't accept that he's really dead and goes to find him.
Harrison's Flowers is a solidly developed film about the many tragedies of modern war. Unlike most modern war films, Harrison's Flowers showcases the human side of war instead of the actual fighting that is war. The film is rather timely now with the war going on in Afghanistan. The apt direction by Chouraqui helps the film achieve mostly what it sets out to accomplish. One hindsight that Chouraqui forgot to include is the needed background on the war. You never really learn what the fighting in Yugoslavia is for. Why all the destruction? Don't expect to learn the answer from this film. Even the occasional voiceover never explains the reasons for the war in the country. The film does manage to create a strong female heroine in Andie MacDowell. You find it always believable what she does in this film because of the good characterization. The supporting performances are for the most part are above average. As MacDowell's young boy Scott Michael Anton is the only performer who doesn't do his part. He doesn't have the skills to convincingly show all of the emotions necessary.
On the technical side, the cinematography by Nicola Pecorini is very striking and well done. The music is well chosen and definitely pulls the heartstrings in the right way. Harrison's Flowers is not a manipulative film.
Overall, Harrison's Flowers is certainly a well-made film with solid acting and technical credits. It's pretty realistic and therefore will not be everyone's cup of tea but for those looking for war film with a different prospective than most out there I recommend Harrison's Flowers.
Rating: 81
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