Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Moustroll Good movie but grossly overrated

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Bluebell Alcock Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Leftbanker This documentary brought me back to that summer sitting on a beach in Hawaii. I was 16 and I read Dove about the voyage of Robin Lee Graham who started his around-the-world sailing when he was 16. I had never been on a boat and didn't have much desire to do anything similar, neither then of ever since. I have spent a little time on sailboats and I've always thought—if not dreamed—of crossing the ocean on a sailing vessel. I would only do it with someone with a lot more experience and knowledge than what I have gleaned after a couple summers of crewing on a racing yacht. Her bravery is the most inspirational aspect of Maidentrip.What this film represents, at least to me, is the sense of adventure in all of us, whether we have acted on it or not. I've never done anything like this but I haven't exactly been paralyzed with fear, cowering inside a locked room. I just like to read, hear, and watch other people's ideas on the subject. I think that I have acted to fulfill a few of my dreams in life and that has made all the difference, as Frost put it.

Kevin Dahlen My family and I enjoyed this film; it's very unique in the manner in which the story unfolds. However, I'm not sure I've ever invested 90 minutes watching a film where I liked the main character less and less as the film unfolds. This is not a criticism of the Julian Schlesinger, but a compliment in telling the story true to form. Laura Decker transforms from a likable young pre-teen to a fairly unlikable teenager that believes she has "earned" everything, and is completely self sufficient seemingly blind to all of the contributions by her Father, sponsors, and a boat that sails itself.Schlesinger creates a very interesting documentary, and for me, watching a film where the documentarian makes it seemingly obvious of their disdain for the primary character.

TxMike I remember a few years ago when news of this planned trip was going around and, knowing nothing else, I too was one of those who said "The girl and her parents must be crazy." Now, after seeing this excellent film and learning more about the girl I have changed my mind completely. She was born on a boat, spent the first 5 years of her life sailing with her mom and dad, she has been sailing solo since she was 6, and even though she is small she is sailing-strong and sailing- wise. The trip she made certainly isn't for everyone but it was just right for her.Laura Decker announced her intention when she was only 13. Right away the Dutch government tried to stop her, even taking the case to court. But after almost a year of haggling the court finally did the right thing and said it was a decision Laura and her parents had to make.The yacht might seem large to some, but for sailing the mighty oceans a 40-foot boat is pretty small. But she and her dad, a boat builder, outfitted it specifically for the trip and sponsors gave instruments for her navigation. But I was impressed to see that she also had old-fashioned charts and a sextant so that she could navigate even if the instruments with GPS guidance failed.All the filming at sea was done by Laura herself. Often she would mount the camera at a strategic spot to film what was going on but the camera was not mounted rigidly and the slight to-fro movement added a lot of the sense of being there. Much of the filming was done in her cabin and kitchen area and in most respects what we see is your typical teenager, acting goofy like a typical teenager, but on a fantastic trip. And relishing the alone time.At times the water and winds were too calm for days at a time and boredom set in. At other times windy storms came up things get real exciting but Laura simply sailed smartly with no time for fear. And when she was on deck she always had on her harness and safety rope. It is very clear that she knew what she was doing.The other nice touch, she didn't try to sail around the world as fast as she could, instead she took almost 2 years and stopped along the way many times to spend time and enjoy the local sights and culture. By the time she got to Darwin, Australia her sails were ripped and several parts of the boat were damaged. Her dad flew there to meet her and together they spent most of 4 weeks completely renovating the boat for the rest of her journey.Laura Dekker is not your ordinary teenager, and as she was nearing completion of her trip at St. Maartens she decided she didn't want to return to Holland. Instead she kept going, until she arrived in New Zealand, a country she already had citizenship by virtue of her birth there. Getting a job to earn money and continue to become a better sailor.My thoughts would have been quite different if she had perished at sea, but she didn't. Some people are just born to do things that others would not. It reminds me of a young Charles Lindbergh who flew solo across the Atlantic in 1927, or a young Mozart who was composing before he was 10. Quite a nice film, I found my self watching it twice on Netflix streaming films.

steve-t-duffy I thoroughly enjoyed this film. As others have mentioned this movie is about the maturing of a young teenager into a young woman through her sailing journey. What I've enjoyed most about this film is the genuine aspect of her journey, she wasn't handed a million dollar sailing yacht with enough tech to sail itself around the world. Laura and her father picked up a relatively inexpensive and broken down boat and fixed it up themselves. At her launch there was only a handful of people seeing her off and her own mother didn't make it. There was no huge fanfare and you had the feeling that the general public never thought she would make it. Laura didn't have a camera crew or support boats following her around. The at sea filming was done by herself and very insightful as to what was going through her head at various stages of the journey. This film is a coming of age film and challenges us to rethink what is possible when we set our minds to a particular task.I've watched the Abby Sunderland and just couldn't compare the two. This film was inspiring as it was a great story.