BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Cleveronix A different way of telling a story

Kidskycom It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

Dirtylogy It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

TheLittleSongbird The Horsemen could have been better, and I was expecting to be bowled over considering the talent there is. It's still however a very decent and interesting film, with its best assets being excellent.When it comes to how The Horsemen looks, it's in this area where the film excels the most. The magnificent Afghanistan scenery, with its breath-taking sunsets and serene mountain views for examples, are done justice by the colourfully sweeping but also gritty photography, with its frequent use of beautiful aerial shots. The lushly romantic and (at other points) also appropriately brassy music score compliments the mood perfectly and the buzkashi scenes are relentlessly brutal(a warning this is not for the faint-hearted) as well as very compelling.John Frankenheimer's direction, while not the best he has ever done is restrained while not undermining any tension when it's needed. The characters are interesting and the interplay between them often is quite real, these are not 'likeable' characters by all means(never were they meant to be) but the development and interplay was well done it was easy to care for them. The acting is well above average on the most, with a more restrained than usual but very commanding, eerie and actually also very moving performance of Jack Palance faring best. His make-up is believable too. Leigh Taylor-Young plays her role very sympathetically.For all these good qualities however, The Horsemen has a few failings. One problem being the script, which has some naturally contemplative and poetic moments but also too many moments of silliness and awkwardness. A good atmosphere is maintained throughout and much of the film is very passionate and emotionally affecting, but the story for my tastes did drag sometimes and felt a little choppy structurally. Omar Sharif(from personal opinion) has also given better performances, it's certainly better than his stiff performance is the badly miscalculated Che Guevara biopic Che(which coincidentally also had Palance in one of his worst performances), but the performance here is a bit one-note and of one expression, Sharif spends most of the time looking very grim and not much of anything else.All in all, a decent film with some truly excellent things, but also could have been great if other important components were done stronger. 6.5/10 Bethany Cox

hkfilmbuff Of the handful or so films directed by John Frankenheimer that I have seen on big screen some 40 years ago, two of them had stuck in my mind. Grand Prix was, in my opinion, by far the best, and The Horsemen was a very close second.Both of these films can only be fully appreciated on BIG screen. It was so long ago, I don't remember all the details; but starting with the opening credits and the aerial shots, it was a captivating film. I remember recognizing Frankenheimer's name the very first time - I wasn't that much into the names of directors when I saw Grand Prix.The film had a raw, animalistic, beauty. The ethnicity and culture of the people reminded me of Taras Bulba. I would love to experience this film on big screen again.

Theo Robertson This is an example of taking a book and adapting it to the large screen and realising with hindsight that it works better as a book . I'm not familiar with Joseph Kessel's original novel but the comments on this page state that the film is very faithful to the book and that might be the problem . It's a story that concentrates on obsession at winning at all costs and Uraz the protagonist is a universal metaphor for all mankind that when you want to win something it can cost you very dearly You can perhaps see why the producers thought this would make a great film with its exotic locations and the fact it was st in Afghanistan before the land reforms the mid 1970s that led to civil war and the subsequent Soviet intervention is what made me seek out the film if only to understand Afghan culture better and the film does contain an intelligent opening when the audience are led to believe they're watching a scene from the 17th Century only to the Afghan rug pulled from under their feet as a jet plane screams over head . Likewise there's some spectacular scenes involving the sport of buzkashi where horsemen literally fight over the carcass of a dead goat and there's some impressive cinematography featuring the Afghan landscape but the inherent problem with the film is the character driven narrative which doesn't kindly lend itself to the medium of cinema

john-1141 There is so much of interest in this compelling film, set in Afghanistan. Based on the book by Joseph Kessells, a writer of rare insight.Centered around the ancient game of Buzkashi, played on horseback, and only in the three northern provinces of Mazar-i-Sharif, Maimana and Kataghan. [The game had it's origin in a training routine instituted by Ghengiz Khan, which both conditioned his men for warfare and provided a means of feeding his army. A very large circle was formed by his warriors and as the circle closed no animal was permitted to escape.]There are some terrific scenes of the first "Royal Buzkashi" played on Bagrami Plain, just outside Kabul, which had been decreed by the king. Also some great footage of the country, depicting the beautiful and varied terrain encountered as Uroz makes the self-imposed and dangerous journey back to his home province in the North.The interplay of all the characters is an education in understanding the powerful role human emotion and upbringing play in all our lives, as both Tursen(the father) and Uroz(the son) attempt to come to terms with their own harsh anger and pride. The consequences spill over and embroil other individuals in the story. The story also gives some insight into the different way of thinking engendered by the cultural mix of religion,relatively isolated living, and living in a harsh environment where survival can be pretty raw.Contrast is drawn by the mix of ancient and modern. One such scene has Tursen (Jack Palance),who as Head of Osman Bey's stable is addressing the chopendoz,(players of Buzkashi), pauses to look upwards at a jetliner passing overhead whilst he stands on "The Roof of the World". Another takes place in the modern hospital in Kabul.Both Palance & Sharif give of their finest, very well supported by a great character cast.A dramatic part of the story unfolds in the Bamian Valley, where Uroz gambles & loses the very thing he later realise he loves and wants back. Historically this part of the film contains important footage of the giant Budhas that were carved into the cliffside, until deliberately destroyed by Talliban militia.All in all, an excellent and enjoyable film and I am surprised it has not been shown on Television or re-issued on disc, as the world focussed on that area just a short time ago.