Beau Bridges Movie:

Smile Reviews:
Smile
2009-12-11 - Excellent film. Having lived and worked in China for several years, I am well acquainted with the millions of children and adults who have serious physical handicaps and have no resources to alleviate or obviate the physical, much less, the emotional pain and suffering. A blatent example of the limitations of socialized medicine's ability to meet people's needs. How anyone can watch this film without having a lump in their throats, at the least, I can not imagine. Great film which is realistic and well directed, acted, etc.
A "must see" for anyone with a heart for others.

Awful. Terrible acting, ridiculous script, plot makes no sense.
2007-04-24 - Actually one of the WORST movies I've ever seen. And what a shame! So much could have been done with this material but the acting is atrocious, the script is laughably ridiculous (more plot holes than a Swiss cheese), and the entire project like a Made-for-TV movie but much, much worse.

I understand that the movie was used as propoganda for various children's deformities organizations, but couldn't the writer, director, producer, and actors have done a better job than this?

I ended up fast-forwarding through half of the movie just because it was so incredibly bad.

Don't waste your money. Instead, send the money you would spend on this piece of garbage to an organization that actually DOES this kind of work!

A Pampered Princess learns a life lesson.
2007-01-10 - The touching story of a spoiled girl, Katie, from an upper middle class family who finds out about a school project where a handful of students go to China to help in a hospital program involving some pretty disfigured kids going through surgeries.

The pictures that Katie sees upsets her (especially one girl in particular who shares her Birthday) and she decides to go with the group.
Throughout the movie, we also see glimpses of the chinese girl's life, which is very sad.

She was abandoned as an infant, and a worker found her, and raised her as his own.
His wife became outraged by this, and instead of HELPING the orphan girl,she become jealous of the attention the man gives her. He ends up raising her alone.

When the 2 girls from different worlds finally meet, it is very touching,and Katie gives the girl, (Li) the courage to go through with the operation.
This was just a very nice movie, one without sex and a lot of cussing,and unpleasant characters (except for the stepmom)
It was just one of those movies that restore your faith in mankind.
Very uplifting, and well acted, too.
Also, it was filmed on location in China, so there is a BEAUTIFUL backdrop to a wonderful story!!!!
I HIGHLY reccomend it!


great movie
2006-06-30 - this is a great movie for teenagers as well as adults. we really love it a lot.

Smile-review
2006-05-18 - While this movie wasn't exactly a good movie, I think it is one of the best out there. It tells the story of a 17 year old spoilt or pampered girl from malibou(Katie), and a girl from rural chinese(Lindsey, or Lin), who shares Katie's birthday. Lin was abonded at birth,due to a severe facial deformity, & is adopted by a worker that finds her. Lin lives with her adoptive father, & his son & wife for seven years, until on Lin's 7th b'day, her dad loses his temper & throw's a cup at his son. The next day, The son & the wife leave. 10 years later, Katie is given an option to participate in a program called "Doctors Gift"(based on real life org. Operation Smile)to get the points she needs to graduate. She decides to go to China as a volunteer with this org. Whislt in China, she has a mental breakdown after she see's the deformities of some of the children. With some help from her room mate, a surgeon, she soons finds the courage to keep going. The next day, she goes off to find Lin. She manage's to convince Lin of what her father wants her to do; Get surgery on her face. This is a very moving, touching story. I cried, because it shows all the hardships people have to put up with and how people reach out to help those people.