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★★★★
Directed by: Orko Mukherjee
Written by: Oko Mukherjee
Starring: Lani Cerveris-Cataldi, Hannah Marijon, Curtis Caldwell
An act of generosity can change a person's life forever. Mukherjee's touching drama Turtle Island explores how much people need one another and that with love one can find success.
Irene (Marijon) has just published a book titled Turtle Island, which is about the story of her life and explains to a large audience how it came to be. A Native American named Andrea (Cataldi) rescues Irene and her mother from poverty by taking them to live with her at her farm. Later her mother passes away and its just the two of them. Eventually Irene meets a man (Caldwell) and decides to leave the farm with him. How will things turn out?
The film partly explores Native American values and traditions. Andrea constantly wears traditional clothing, plays a Native American flute and tells stories related to her people. And it is explained that 'Turtle Island' is a name invented by Native Americans in order to describe North America.
From the start, viewers are introduced to protagonist Irene and her success as an author. From that point on, they will most likely be intrigued by her story and will want to find out about her, Andrea and how she managed to get to where she is now. And they will not be disappointed by what they discover later.
Although at times the acting gives the impression that it could had been more realistic, the performances are generally favorable. Marijon is likeable as a young woman trying to find her path in life and Cataldi is convincing as a down-to-earth woman looking out for Irene and trying to guide her. And Caldwell does a good job in his supporting role as a man who charms his way into Irene's life.
The film also includes brief, but beautiful animation sequences involving fireflies in the forest and accompanied by a fantastic score and the audience will probably be mesmerized.
Throughout the movie, viewers will have the pleasure of hearing great music and magical tunes, primarily the ones coming from the flute that Andrea plays.
Turtle Island is a heartwarming film. It is a story of love, struggle and shows that by accepting support, being strong and believing in oneself, one can achieve.
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