Matrixston
Wow! Such a good movie.
SparkMore
n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.
Myron Clemons
A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.
LPGPaul
This BBC series is actually a fine portrayal of the historical intrigues and factual discrepancies that surround the Stalinist era. To many students of history the story told about the end of Stalin's life has been officially tailored for minimum controversy. This series piques the conspiracy fanatic to see beyond the need for popular 007-esque shoot-em-up scenes from Daniel Craig, and delves more fully into the cultural dissonance and still-oppressed lifestyles in today's Russia. It takes the more informed audience to see that the story challenges a western viewer to understand life in today's Russia. To realize the present generational conflict among both anti- and pro-soviet era senior citizens and the contemporary Russian society who are trying to justify the need for genuine freedom, even if to understand mistakes of the past.
kluseba
As a big fan of history and Russian culture, I was excited to watch this movie but didn't expect very much from a TV production. Useless to say that this movie is a must seen for anyone who likes Russian history, society and lifestyle. But it is also easy to watch and understand for someone who doesn't know much about the topic because most of the sings are told in the interesting past sequences of the movie. I've travelled to Russia and seen and lived a lot of particular things there and must admit that the behaviours of the police, the military and the government in this movie are not a stupid cliché but quite close to reality. Even the locations chosen for the shootings remind me of the modern Russian post-soviet lifestyle even though most of the scenes have been filmed in Latvia.Well, I got largely surprised as this movie is really intense and has a realistic scenario that makes you think a lot about nowadays's societies and ideologies. The movie is really entertaining and I have watched it several times without getting bored at all. The characters and the story are well and profoundly developed. The surprising element in the movie is not such a big twist but that isn't negative because the main idea is quite original and the maintain of the tension is always guaranteed in this movie. The movie's finale is dramatically and interesting.The most positive surprise in this movie is the acting of Daniel Craig. I've always known him as the cool, emotionless and somehow mediocre James Bond actor but he is really convincing in this movie. He plays with emotions, with conviction and with an unknown diversity. The only time he played as well was in "Defiance" which you would also like if you like this movie.I really can recommend this entertaining and surprisingly well done and produced movie even though most of the critics are actually too negative.
elcoat
As another reviewer has said, it starts out questionably and then gets deeper and better. It begins in banality and descends into a dark, sinister evil.Craig's character seems like a selfish, repulsive academic opportunist who stumbles on something far bigger than he ever imagined and tries to rise to the threat.The importance of archival research is showcased.The Russian actress is convincing and erotic. The Russian characters are consistent with people I have known.It would be interesting to know more about the background of the film. The plot is entirely believable: it is generally unknown that the Yeltsin government actually considered bringing back Russian royalty from an illegitimate offspring of the Czar. Children of powerful, dominating leaders can have a charisma with the masses which can indeed be psychologically and politically compelling, and actor Konstantin Lavronenko was as convincing as he was chilling as the Young Joseph.The film is also extremely educational about what Stalinism was like and how it has haunted modern Russia ... if less so, with time.Despite some recent attempts at Reversionism in Russia, I don't think neo-Stalinism is a threat there -- considering our past tradition and championing of humanitarianism and democracy, we became worse for a time -- but the film makes you think about what great historical evil was like and where it could head all of us.Lou Coatney
Armand
Travel in past. A new old Russia and its ghosts, mysteries and a hansom professor. A kind of Da Vinci code, soft, nice and with some drops of tension. Stalin and his shadow. A son and a dark legacy. A notebook and the lost life of a young girl. Nostalgics and Secret Services. Pieces of a thriller. Nothing new, in fact. Superficial, like any East story in the eyes of an American, half -truth and classic recipes. Victory of good guy and the failure of evil. But interesting in that case are the roots. Russia is a mystery, part of its history and Bovary's land. His dreams are fruits of an one era. The leaders are masks of a single Master. The present is more small for the desire to be a Power.And the time - a notebook of a young girl lost in an era's memory.