Huievest Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

Doomtomylo a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

Jenna Walter The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Kirpianuscus a film of controversies. because it could be better. or because it uses , in not the most inspired manner, good actors. for atmosphere. for realistic details of story. for the status of history lesson, useful for understand the essence of a life and struggle and cruel idealism. Richard Burton is not the best option for the role of Trotsky. but , not surprising, he does a decent job. Alain Delon seems be on the thin ice. but his performance, version of empty soul character, is far to be bad. Romy Schneider is herself one of the virtues of film, only for her presence. "The Assassination of Trotsky" is one of films who has all opportunities to be easily criticized. if you ignore its message. because, more than a historical film, it is a warning. and, maybe, this must be the start point for see it.

whatsupomar Doubtless, one of the greatest tragedies ever inflicted upon mankind was the rise and spread of communism in the 20th century. For the ideology to control the masses, millions were killed and large segments of the population were imprisoned or sent to labor camps. Several countries were destroyed and the hatred among classes became the basis of the "International movement" for world domination.A big mess like that should never be forgotten and that's why I encourage everybody, especially young people, to be well informed on all matters pertaining to the communist horrors. Now for the film review I must start mentioning that "The Assassination of Trosky" is not an anti-communist film, nor is it anti-Soviet or anti-Stalin or anti-anything. I can't even vouch for its historical accuracy but I still recommend it for the importance of the subject matter. In short for those who totally ignore who Trosky was and his place on the Soviet debacle this could be a good place to start.The 1972 film boasts a prestigious cast of actors and an intelligent director but somehow those ingredients don't add up to a good movie. I can't place my finger on it but it could be the sometimes vague script, the slow moving start or even some of the performances. I may get grief for saying this but I found Richard Burton totally miscast as the Russian revolutionary and you can tell he's wearing a fake goatee a mile away. As the movie progresses there are some moments in which he shines but overall he comes through too Shakespearean to be credible.Meanwhile the character of the assassin, as played by the great Alain Delon, is never given the opportunity to be for real. Mr. Delon plays it full of nervous ticks like he doesn't understand what motivated Mercader, the real killer, to embark in such a gruesome mission. Maybe there was no research that could inform him that his character was the son of Caridad, a Cuban lady who has gone down in history as the ultimate mother from hell. The lady, who after her marriage to a Spanish rich guy, showed signs of mental instability, raised all her sons to be servants of the communist international movement. (For an excellent presentation of the Mercader character and the whole Trosky affair try to see the 1996 award winning documentary "Storm The Skies", a real gem.) As much as I love Romy Schneiner, I have to guess that her character is a total fabrication in order to pair her again with real life ex-amour Delon and to show them again loving and fighting. The producers must have thought that including her would give the film an extra boost at the box office and maybe it did. Although she gets briefs chances to display her histrionics as Delon's lover and Burton's secretary she seems to belong in a different movie. Of the actors only Valentina Cortese seems credible as the devoted Trosky wife.In short I recommend this film with reservations. Some of you might even like the scene where Trosky gets killed and the premonition at the bull ring with all its cinematic gore but I really hope that it will turn you on into a deeper understanding of Soviet cruelty and the horrible things that happened not to long ago. It could happen again, you know?

tedr0113 This film has a reputation as a terrible film which I find greatly undeserved. It is average in the sense there are better films and there are worse. I found the film to be fairly static. The story is slow moving and the character of the assassin is never really delineated. Alain Delon is the true lead of the film, with Burton's Trotsky more a secondary character. I thought Burton did a fine job as Trotsky, the only think slightly bothering me is that Burton was physically imposing and that's not how I picture Trotsky. I picture him as more of a bookish intellectual of less than physically imposing attributes. (I do not know the actual physical attributes of Trotsky.) In any case, Romy Schneider is very lovely and sexy and the camera also treats Delon well, even if we do not have any clear insight to his motivation. In the end, I'm not sure what the purpose of this film was and that is its greatest failure. But, while the film did not succeed, there is nothing memorably bad about it. So my rating falls plum in the middle.

Pellaeon4 The subject matter was the only saving factor for this movie, but the quality was hardly befitting of such a story and man. Historiographically the movie stayed true to facts or that is, the facts accepted by Nicholas Mosley, the screenwriter. Mosley had published a book of the same title the same year as the production of this movie. They claim in the opening scene to portray the facts as closely as possible and those that are ambiguous they leave open, but the assassination of Trotsky is surrounded by mystery and speculation. I've come to understand that the only piece of hard evidence agreed upon by all, is that Trotsky died at the end.Disappointingly the movie tends to leave out or vaguely use interesting details related to the incident, which makes the movie somewhat confusing to those who have no previous knowledge of the event. And that would be my advice, that one should look into the topic independently after seeing this movie in order to better grasp such a historically significant event. In terms of acting and plot I don't believe the movie pays it justice.