Period piece. in old Ukraine ( The actual events took place in the 16th Century.) the workers are under seige from both the overlords and the invading Turks. Yul Brynner and Tony Curtis are father and son, always fighting for their freedom. first, the father Taras teams up with the overlords to fight the poles. suddenly, son Andrei is grown up, and must now study, before he needs to fight the poles again. we witness the whipping Andrei takes (to learn civilized ways??) and begins his studies. and falls for the beautiful Natalia, daughter of a rich and powerful family. this one is a little extra soapy, sudsy, but gets the story across. can't say too much... don't want to give away any plot points. very loosely based on history. the challenge or "duel" that Andrei and another cossack have, right at the one hour mark, seems to be more based on the energy and skill of the horses than of the men! and having drunks walk a plank over a bear pit. did they really do that? Brynner had already won his oscar for King and I. interesting trivia... Curtis married Christine Kaufmann, right after she turned 18. and he was about 37. she was 17 when they met on the set. Directed by Lee Thompson. he had just done Guns of Navarone (oscar!) and Cape Fear. Story by Nikolai Gogol, in the 1800s. the film was nominated for best music. two hours. drinking and fighting. it's okay.
Review of Taras Bulba
