So much average

Excellent but underrated film

A Disappointing Continuation

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Calling this an opportunity or a distant desire to review this long lost series from the public eye and about a show that (one of my favorite, and revered actresses' of all time and highly adorable and practical) Nicole Kidman did before the world came to knew her through her films, this one definitely needs a view worth of your eyes.Before I go on with my review, I would like to tell that there many versions roaming in the market, while there are two main versions i.e., a set of 3 episodes and a set of them into 6 episodes (LATTER OF WHICH I GOT HOLD OF), so there's no difference in both of them, but I decided to let to know beforehand.The show revolves around Katrina Stanton as Nicole Kidman, a young innocent woman who is in for her long-estranged father but gets entrapped in the web of lies and brutality, when she becomes a pawn in a drug smuggling when one of the the smugglers encharms her, unbeknownst to her, she gets caught as a result at the Bangkok airport and then in the Bangkok Hilton prison (a fictional name to Hanoi Hilton) and how her struggles and the people (including her father in disguise) who help her, try to get her out of the mess. Now, my review, to this show that is looked upright to all the people who have grown watching this during the time it release (1989),You might find it dull, inferior to contemporary styles, inconsistent at places but wont disagree to me, that, it is a well made series looking at its time and how shows like this dealt such topics and how without turning mediocre, give a great deal for a time of 4 hours and more few minutes. Plus, you wouldn't ignore the musical score it plays behind and how awesome it is and how it haunts and enchants you even later and when you have watched the series.At last, do go and get a DVD and decide yourself that haven't I got you a great deal for the money with something different?

My wife and I watched this first 20 years ago and were stunned by the sheer quality of the acting and writing in this way above average TV mini series.It was obviously a different world for TV - six episodes allow the story to develop with all its complexity, all its twists and turns. Its almost like a documentary reconstruction at times - it is so real and plausible.However, what really impressed us at the time - along with a sterling performance by Denholm Elliot (which was only to be expected) - was the performance by some Australian actress we'd never heard of before. Very promising career ahead of her, we thought. Nicole... something or other. Wonder what happened to her?This week we saw it again, for the first time for 20 years, and - remarkably - it really is again as good as it was the first time around. Okay, the production values are very 70s but the story is as brilliantly told and as gripping as ever.

I have read all the IMDb reviews of this fantastic TV series and I agree that Nicole Kidman, Denholm Elliot and Hugo Weaving did a superb job. The story was excellent, tightly woven and after the first 20 minutes or so will keep you glued to the screen.However, only one reviewer seems to remember the extraordinary performance of Joy Smithers who played the role of Mandy Engels, Kidman's cell mate.Her performance was tortured, harrowing and unforgettable, not to talk of her wild beauty. I don't know about her career beyond The Bangkok Hilton but her performance was definitely Oscar worthy in a best supporting role if there was an Oscar for TV shows.

When I first saw the series, I was 15 years old. Ever since I saw it, the first thing that came to mind whenever I heard the name Nicole Kidman was this series. And it was also something that tended to come up at the dinnertable when we were going back discussing television-shows.Now, some 17 years later I accidentally stumbled upon the DVD and I was rather reserved about the thought of seeing it again because what else but disappointment was there to gain from seeing something which held a good memory but was surely going to be completely outdated.Imagine my surprise that although it was rather dated, it had actually aged so well. Another surprise was finding no one less than Hugo Weaving playing a major role in it. An actor I had grown to love ever since I saw him in 'The Interview' and the later classics such as LOTR and the Matrix.Bangkok Hilton has survived the test of time basically because of the really great acting performances, script, story and ambiance. And apparently this was all that it needed to remain the classic that it has become. And by no means the cinematography, which wouldn't stand a chance against even the average soap opera we see today.When you compare the story and the screenplay to modern similar tales such as the prison-series OZ, you will find that it is really hopeless out of date. The hell-hole of a jail in which Kidman is kept, is like a Disneyride compared to what the men in Emerald City had to endure in OZ. You will find no 'spooning' practices in Bangkok Hilton if you know what I mean.Perhaps this is what makes this mini series so great, that it's the story that keeps you on the edge of your seat rather than a form of (graphic) violence which seems to be todays primary ingredient for a success film-wise. Just see Labirinto Del Fauno if you want to check my point. That was a so called 'message movie' with really no message at all but in stead featured a been there done that war-drama and cardboard characters. Nonetheless, that movie was hailed by the public and professional movie critics when all it had to offer was a vapid contrast between fable and really graphic violence replacing what used to be a tale between good and evil and its 'grey zone'.Bangkok Hilton confirmed what I suspected all along, namely that cinema (although achieving greater technical marvels day by day) is becoming increasingly more banal and formula driven, even in the successful, so called 'art house films'.I'm sorry for letting this review turn out to be such a rant. Thanks for reading and see Bankok Hilton whenever you get a chance.cheers!