Film Reviews for The Way – Camino de Santiago
It is nice to see that people are liking my new film, The Way, my journey along the Camino de Santiago. It is quite a personal film, so it is positive for me to see that people can relate to my honesty.
Below are a couple of reviews from around the world:
Absolutely Amazing
I don’t know if you refer to it as a documentary or a short film or simply a project, but I’ll tell you this much…this film deserves an award of some kind. Mark, I’ve watched my share of travellogues and documentaries over the years and you can do the world a favor by continuing to make films like this for as long as you are able. I swear to you that I am not blowing smoke up your ass (arse) when I say this…you are a true professional. You must keep doing this kind of filmmaking. I’ve watched these types of films on tv and a lot of the so called ”real pros” can’t hold a candle to your work. I have already watched ”The Way” three times this week. Needless to say…I think it’s great.
I felt like I was a part of the trek. The way that you speak to your audience and bring us along with you, is in my opinion, something that is missing in other films of this nature. You don’t talk too much, you manage to get the point across in just a few words. You have a way of making the observer feel as though we are taking part in your travels. It’s not just a film that you are showing…it’s an excursion that you are allowing us to be a part of. You have a gift for this sort of thing…stay with it my friend.
Through this film you have made me want to take part in mountain climbing / hiking again. We are just heading into our winter months back here, but come March and the spring thaw, you can bet that thanks to you, I will be enjoying many hikes into and around the wilds once again. You have already brought back many happy memories for me of all the times I spent with my dad when I was a young man hiking the mountains with him. You have..through your film..rekindled my love for the outdoors, and for that I can’t thank you enough. You work a sort of magic with your filmmaking..don’t ever stop.
Dan Horne, Massachusetts, USA
“The Way” is a terrific film of spiritual adventurer Mark Shea’s search for personal meaning walking along the picturesque landscape of Spain’s Way of St James. Carrying his own video equipment Mark limps through mud, rain and wind wondering if he has the stamina to keep going. We see Mark struggle to make sense of the journey and ponder some of life’s deeper mysteries. Good to see an Australian have the courage to make a film like this as spiritual pursuits of this kind are not commonly shown or spoken about by the average Australian male.
Frank Gapinski, Australian Filmmaker
I like the story because it really shows a person changing his view of
the world. From being optimistic and light-headed, without that much
of a purpose, to being thoughtful and quite bewildered about the
discoveries that the pain and the solitude bring.
You can see a kind of mystical revolution going on in the filmmaker. Not
everything that goes through his head is told in the doco, and it is
easy to see that there is a lot that he thinks and doesn’t want to tell.
That’s fine, that way we can all identify a bit with him and put our
thoughts in his head.
The storytelling is good, is it easy to share with the moments of
pain, of boredom and of amazement. There are several points where I
laughed quite hard, like when the filmmaker admits to being sick of everything,
or when he finds the river in Galicia.
I liked very much the sound on the doco. The walking sounds added a
lot of atmosphere, and the time when the filmmaker is heard singing terribly
while he walks, a song that could probably go on and on for hours,
reminded me of when we would sing too while walking. It also made me
feel that the filmmaker was going a bit crazy! In general I think that the way
the doco sounds is one of the best points.
Alberto Cuesta Cañada, Spanish Scientist
