coco1986 I had recently posted a comment and someone filed an abuse complaint and had it deleted because I chose not to lie about the quality of the film. This is truly one of the worst movies I have ever seen in my life and I am very sorry my family wasted our money renting it. The acting is horrendous, the French accents are by far the most fake accents I have ever heard in a film, and every now and then, the characters drop their "French" accents and speak with American ones. The quality of picture and lighting is very poor, and I'm not even sure I follow what's going on. I don't know how the people who made this could watch it and think it was suitable for the viewing public.

explorationacademy My 13 year old son and I saw this movie with another 13 year old boy and his mom. We all found the movie to be very engaging and entertaining. My friend commented that it was better than many big studio children's movies. I especially enjoyed the scene where Helen is traveling through the forest to the swamp and the scenes with Grandmere. The special effects, cinematography and sound were of top-notch quality. It's hard to believe that this film was created by a first-time producer, and a crew and cast mostly made up of kids. The community model of film making has proved to be a success. We can't wait for the sequel.

sskuhn My family and I saw this movie in Houston over Thanksgiving, while visiting my brother, the producer Frank Eakin. Frank has worked on this film full time for the last three years, and we were all impressed with the high quality of the final product. The model of a community based, yet high-quality,production may seem a stretch, especially when movies routinely cost in the millions, but the props, the filming, the editing, all are very high quality. And the children-- not only the main characters, but all of the children-- are so engaging and believable in the characterizations that The Woodlands should be proud of their concentation of talented youth! Of course, the adult actors and volunteers should get applause as well.But what will determine the quality of any film will be the story line and the characters. As a mother and grandmother, I have watched many children's movies, and I can say that this movie draws in the audience as well as any, and better than most. The action is fast-paced, the characterizations are multi-dimensional, and the result is wholesome fun with a subtle message about friendship and courage and using power for good, all in a professional quality film.

karahkwa Hilarious is the operative term for THE BRACELET OF BORDEAUX.It is a fast-paced, fanciful film that offers a nudge-wink mix of slapstick, irony, and withering social satire about "Chem City," Texas. Adults and children alike laughed long and hard at the showing I attended, with nary a mean-spirited gag in sight.The quality I liked best about BRACELET was its overarching emphasis on the importance of choosing -- and keeping -- the right kinds of friends. Although clearly aimed at kids, the film has both a sense of humor and message adults would benefit by heeding.Thank goodness the filmmakers chose to emphasize fantasy over realism. Is anyone besides me tired of films that fail to take advantage of the nearly boundless theatricality and visual creativity the medium allows? Without giving away the plot, I can say that a form of magic, with roots in an important period of contemporary world history, plays a pivotal role in the development of the story.Equally refreshing was the use of believable, average-looking child actors, playing characters resembling real kids. Again, is anyone besides me tired of movies that present children as tiny, physically idealized, wise-cracking adults? Speaking of wisecracks, I liked the way the film's abundant humor sprang not from one-liners or clichés, but from the wild images on the screen or the irony of the situations orchestrated by the script.Since I knew this was an independent film shot on a shoestring, I was surprised by the quality of the production. The photography was professional, as were the sets, costumes and props. Effects were high-quality, and acting was top-rate. I give extra points to the adult actors who portrayed the marionettes behind the juvenile-delinquent puppets. Sal's role added necessary weight to the plot, while the scenes featuring him and his hapless toady added levity to the proceedings with their straight-faced absurdity.In reading background on the film, I learned that BRACELET is the first by Frank Eakin and that it was so low-budget it was practically no-budget. The information begs the question: Has digital technology made film a truly democratic art form? The success of THE BRACELET OF BORDEAUX is enough to make believers out of the most stalwart doubters in the power of digital video technology.