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Broken English

Play trailer Poster for Broken English NC-17 1996 1h 32m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
82% Tomatometer 17 Reviews 74% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
Many years ago, Ivan (Rade Serbedzija) fled his native Bosnia, which had broken out in war, for New Zealand. Although he has adjusted to his new home, where he works as a drug runner, he's distrustful of his Maori neighbors. In part to anger him, Nina (Aleksandra Vujcic), one of his daughters, enters into a green-card marriage with a Chinese immigrant (Yang Li) while also dating Eddie (Julian Arahanga), a Maori cook. Ivan's rage soon poses a threat to Nina and Eddie's happiness.

Critics Reviews

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Mike Clark USA Today 01/01/2000
3.5/4
An absorbing portrait of New Zealand's ill-blended melting pot. Go to Full Review
Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times 01/01/2000
3/4
The situation is not original, but the setting makes it seem so, and the director and co-writer, Gregor Nicholas, is alert to nuances of the characters. Go to Full Review
Sean P. Means Salt Lake Tribune 07/20/2007
3/4
Zoe Cassavetes... lets Nora's complicated emotional story play out, and she finds in Posey a strong collaborator in catching all of Nora's tics and charms. Go to Full Review
Christian Science Monitor 07/13/2007
B
Frank Swietek One Guy's Opinion 07/12/2007
C-
Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com 06/17/2005
3/5
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Audience Reviews

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Stephen C @bob25009 Jul 24 Success in 1 hour and 32 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The USA grossed over $540,500.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See more 05/19/2022 I love this move. This is one of my all time favorite films. The acting, the story, everything is a work of art. See more 05/03/2022 What is broken English than being the language of love, honor, and betrayal ? Many years ago, Ivan who is the fierce patriarch of his Croatian family(Rade Serbedzija) fled his native Bosnia, which had broken out in war, for New Zealand Although he has adjusted to his new home, where he works as a drug runner, he's distrustful of his Maori neighbors In part to anger him, Nina (Aleksandra Vujcic), one of his daughters, enters into a green-card marriage with a Chinese immigrant (Yang Li) while also dating Eddie (Julian Arahanga), a Maori cook Ivan's rage soon poses a threat to Nina and Eddie's happiness Nina and Eddie start to see their own flaws too; do they know a single thing about each other? What would we sacrifice for our happiness only to lose the love of our parents? The melodrama is heightened a lot yet the film explores a lot with this complicated forbidden romance Even a New Zealand family unit has a boiling melting pot See more 07/01/2013 Can you tell me where I can get this movie? See more 04/21/2013 The situation is not original, but the setting makes it seem so, and the director and co-writer, Gregor Nicholas, is alert to nuances of the characters. See more 08/19/2011 Una fórmula extremadamente conocida en un contexto diferente. No goza de actuaciones muy convincentes pero sí de una buena dirección y un guión que, aunque ligeramente predecible, no carece de emoción y complejidad. See more Read all reviews
Broken English

My Rating

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Movie Info

Synopsis Many years ago, Ivan (Rade Serbedzija) fled his native Bosnia, which had broken out in war, for New Zealand. Although he has adjusted to his new home, where he works as a drug runner, he's distrustful of his Maori neighbors. In part to anger him, Nina (Aleksandra Vujcic), one of his daughters, enters into a green-card marriage with a Chinese immigrant (Yang Li) while also dating Eddie (Julian Arahanga), a Maori cook. Ivan's rage soon poses a threat to Nina and Eddie's happiness.
Director
Gregor Nicholas
Producer
Robin Scholes
Rating
NC-17
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 17, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$540.5K
Runtime
1h 32m
Sound Mix
Surround