And it's a fairly straight-forward, by-the-numbers story that is buoyed by some excellent acting. That comes mostly from Q'orianka Kilcher (THE NEW WORLD) as the title character, the princess of Hawai'i during the annexation by the U.S. Her mother was Hawaiian royalty and her father was Scottish. Near the turn of the century, the haole (white ranchers, most notably Sanford Dole) were taking over Hawai'i, and pushing the royal family out of power. Ka'iulani is taken by her father back to the U.K. where she faces racism in school (leading to many a single crystalline tear streaming down her cheek) but also finds love. But by the time they let her know about the trouble back home, it's nearly too late. So this "barbarian princess" travels to the East coast of America, charms the press, meets President Cleveland (who is sympathetic, but unfortunately is a lame duck at this point, just weeks from being replaced by a less sympathetic McKinley). About her only victory was getting the natives the right to vote. Small consolation, given that she's lost her entire nation.
Running Time: 130 minutes
My Total Minutes: 185,843
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