jimhanzlik When I recorded this I had low expectations. I didn't now how good of a job National Geographic would do with a movie, but I decided to watch it just because I love anything historical. The movie is chock full of really good actors who all do a great job. There is a lot of tension between the English and natives that feels real. Even though we all know how this story ends there is a lot of suspense. I got worried when things seemed to go against the pilgrims and it seemed like the natives would attack them. I also cheered when the Pilgrims were victorious over their enemies. I don't know how accurate this movie was, but it felt like they were trying to be accurate, and if it is accurate, I feel like I learned something. This movie did what a good historical film should do, and that is really give you a feeling for what it must have felt like to be in that place at that time. On this score, the movie was excellent. I highly recommend this movie.

Jack Hunter Its very rare to see a show where every single character is just so unlikeable.Only reason I'm giving it 2 stars instead of one is Ray Stevenson. There, guy is worth a full star on his own. Loved him in Rome.We are talking 3 hours of nonstop nonsense about God until I have urge to go find this God and torture him, than slay him. I found it utterly impossible to enjoy bad accents, badly written story, horrible camera work, its like people filming this never did anything else.Every single shot is off. Its never centered closeup. Its always either wobbly camera, or closeup is weirdly partial with guy aiming somewhere mid chest filming face from eyes down. Its just ... really weird.Maybe this could have been decent if better person wrote it, directed it and ... yeah, its just garbage.

lavatch "Saints and Strangers" recounts the story of the voyage of the Mayflower and the early settlement at Plymouth. The miniseries aired on the National Geographic Channel and is now available in the DVD format.As opposed to a film documentary, the approach is a dramatization in the form of a miniseries. The title derives from the main theme of the drama, which concerns the two groups of immigrants: the devout pilgrims and those who came to America for mercenary reasons. But the film avoids a melodramatic, cut-and-dry approach to the characters. The strength of the series is that it paints a far more complex picture of the immigrants, as well as the Native Americans with whom the settlers came into contact.One of key roles is that of the historical figure of Stephen Hopkins. At one of the turning points in the drama, Hopkins confesses to his wife that the situation in America is not black-and-white, but falls withing a "grey" area. The same realization comes to the group's governor, William Bradford, whose piety is tested by the struggle to survive. Another multidimensional role is that of the Native American named Squanto, who on the surface is sympathetic to the foreigners, but underneath has a seething rage due to his personal losses of family and tribe. The filmmakers discovered ambiguity in a set of roles that could have been bland stereotypes.The film is beautifully photographed and includes a fine ensemble cast. There is also a helpful website on the National Geographic Channel's home page that includes a "who's who" list and description of the main historical characters.Overall, this film was definitely a cut above the average television miniseries. There was some thought that went into the teleplay, and the production values were closer to those of a feature film than a cable TV series.

hiroshita Saints and Strangers does a pretty good job of telling the story of the early encounters between New England's pilgrim settlers and their Native American hosts/antagonists. I felt the story portrayed a balanced (accuracy is debatable) view of the plight of both groups. The constant cultural dilemmas, physical dangers, and shifting alliances made for a good night of television. There's obviously a lot of history to fit into 2 episodes so hopefully this will return as a full series. One interesting note: when I read through the cast of characters, I was surprised to see Ron Livingston (of Office Space fame) listed as portraying John Carver? I totally missed him...I'll have to pay closer attention when I watch it again.