Published by: World Tibet Network News Saturday, November 8, 1997

Movie Review By Monica Chen, 15 years old

CHAPEL HILL, North Carolina, Friday November 7, 97 (Reuters) - With sun-bleached blond hair swaying over his dazzling blue eyes, heart throb actor Brad Pitt is as cute as ever in "Seven Years in Tibet."

No matter that the film's storyline was sort of weak and that Pitt's Austrian accent didn't sound Austrian to me, "Brad Babe" is as gorgeous as the panoramic Himalayan scenery splashed on the screen behind him. As I filed into the theater along with several starry-eyed teen girls, the expectations for a GREAT film were there. Personally, I too anticipated a great movie -- a dish of drama and excitement, with Pitt giving it an extra tinge of spice.

The film opens with a beautiful shot of snow-capped mountain scenery. Not too long into the film our handsome star emerges. I was ready to fall for him right then and there, but then he opened his mouth.

What planet or country is he supposed to be from, my film-going friend and I wondered.

Maybe it's Australian, my friend whispered.

No, I said. It's German.

Are you kidding me, my friend whispered back.

Well, the accent was supposed to be Austrian and admittedly my friend and I are not expert linguists, but we are able to tell when an accent comes and goes. This one was not consistent.

In the film Pitt plays Heinrich Harrer, a real-life historic figure who, in addition to being a Nazi and member of Hitler's elite SS, undertook a long Himalayan adventure on which the film is based.

Leaving his pregnant wife behind, Harrer takes off on his mountain climb but the trek is interrupted when he is taken a prisoner of war by British troops at the onset of World War Two.

He escapes prison and sets out to find some greater spiritual meaning in life. To do so, he heads to the sacred Tibetan city of Lhasa.

For the first hour or so, the movie makes a point again and again and again of Harrer's obnoxious behavior and pomposity. After a while, I was ready for the audience to shout "All right already."

Harrer finally reaches Tibet, and meets the adorable young Dalai Lama. Harrer and the Dalai Lama become fast friends and the second half of the film works hard to inform viewers of their closeness.

In short, we are supposed to warm up to Harrer after his spiritual transformation under the leadership of the Dali Lama. Harrer was a Nazi and walked out on his pregnant wife, and now we are supposed to like this obnoxious creep?

Surprisingly it kind of works. We are willing to let some of Harrer's bad points slide, perhaps because it's Brad Pitt filling his shoes.

The movie was actually boring -- too much mountain climbing and too much of an effort put into the loud, boastful and obnoxious side of Pitt's character.

The film lacks the kind of emotion that makes you hold your breath or really care about any of the characters.

If you are a diehard Brad Pitt fan, you may be able to overlook the flaws of "Seven Years in Tibet." If Pitt's not your idea of a dream date, this may not be the film for you.

For more information about "Seven Years in Tibet," which is rated PG-13, visit the Columbia Tristar Web site for the movie at http://www.mandalay.com/Tibet/.