Dead Mountain (2020) User Reviews

Great series

[boyar-jedi · 8/10 · 22 November 2020]

The most famous TV series in the world, based on a rather sorrowful page from the history of the USSR is without a doubt "Chernobyl". But now a new series has emerged - «Dead mountain. The Dyatlov Pass Incident» - that is also based on real and rather terrible events dated back to the USSR , and I'm wondering if it will become an international sensation?

The series is built around a widely known tragedy that happened in the Ural mountains in 1959. A group of tourists set off on a ski hike but at the appointed time hadn't reached its destination point. Several days later criminalists were sent out to look for the tourists and only by May all 9 bodies were found. The skiers died under mysterious circumstances. Tremendous amount of versions were built around this tragedy, but the incident still remains unsolved - even 60 years after the event. Can the series shed light on that ill-fated night?

The main protagonist is the KGB major Oleg Kostin. He is sent from Moscow to either establish the truth or to cover it up. Kostin is a former veteran of WWII, and in his military past there is a certain ominous encounter that the authors do not put on the table immediately.

The series was shot in the style of "Soviet Noir": an atmospheric retro vibe shot on film. Despite the rapidly changing events, the mood is quite unhurried. It doesn't give you a feeling of senseless action sequence, «Dead Mountain» gives a viewer an opportunity to think and get absorbed by the event. Camera work is truly outstanding - gloriously shot mountain scenery, remarkable camera angles, unusual jumps and moves.

«Dead mountain» is for those who love TV series based on real events, who like to time travel into the past in search for answers. It is both stylish and captivating.

brilliant - beautifully done

[ricewithaspoon · 8/10 · 6 May 2021]

Oh my God was this a beautiful surprise!

I honestly loved every minute of it & I'm still in a kind of haze.. and worn out.

Storytelling - pace.. just ace! And so beautifully executed.

The camera was insane. It had a graphic novel feel, some stills could be paintings... during a war flashback i thought i was in a flight simulator.. The set design was divine.

The music/sound department: the exact right amount of everything in the right color.

The actors: each character was perfectly casted. I don't know how they managed to make it so ...wholesome.

The whole composition was quite rich, never rushed though. Never been to russia - it really made me feel as if i was there at times.

You can just feel it. The horror of it all, war, humanity, this terrible incident... despair, the cold. I have to admit i was tearing up.

Also one has to note how they choose to include much of the "known evidence". The carvings in the trees along the way they hiked... the autopsies... I am not sure how much they deviated from the atmosphere depicted in their diaries though.

I could gush and gush - maybe because i was so deprived of good stuff the past 1,5 years... but check it out for yourself.

If you're not glued to the screen by the 2nd, 3rd episode, then there is probably really nothing for you to get out of.

I am wondering what the budget was?

To me, this was the best tv-present since The Terror.

Well constructed and beautifully executed

[mart-45 · 9/10 · 8 April 2021]

Told in flashbacks, the series unfolds an intriguing narrative that poses interesting existential questions and dissects such canonized Russian subjects as WWII very boldly. It's also an effective, albeit slow-burning horror story, gorgeously filmed, intelligenty written and well acted. If you like eerie mountains, Soviet nostalgia and Nazi mysticism (stupenduous Wewelsburg castle!) , go for it.

Brilliantly Done !

[nonsensefans · 10/10 · 23 January 2022]

What a surprise to found this gem ! How come I never heard of this serie? I've seen so many foreign series, I would say this was one of the best Russian series (based on true stories) I've ever seen ! Acting was phenomenal ! Lead actor was good looking too ! All cast performances were great! Very eerie, haunting, mystery, drama, history, war, thriller all combines into what makes this series a great one to binge !

Riveting with excellent production values

[lmrk5705 · 9/10 · 28 December 2021]

This is a true event which has fascinated me for years as it's so bizarre. This series encompasses a lot of the various theories as to how these hikers died. There are some supernatural elements thrown in as well. What I loved about this series was the production values. Because this event occurred in 1959 in the Ural Mountains, everything appears to be authentic to the period. The flash backs to fighting the Nazi's were also fantastic & would have made a great series in itself. The acting is great. A hidden gem.

Excellent show! Hollywood take note!

[wig2160 · 9/10 · 8 September 2021]

Excellent show! Hollywood take note on how to tell a story. Soviet era thriller with a bit of Supernatural-Horror-UFO to boot. Very well done with the takes from WW2 to 1959. Watch it.

One of the best Russian TV-series

[sbkwsk · 9/10 · 27 November 2020]

Fantastic cinematography, great casting line-up, gorgeous creative direction, drama, and scenario. A breakthrough masterpiece for contemporary Russian cinema.

Dramatic and poetic licence on a real incident

[laduqesa · 7/10 · 7 February 2021]

No one knows for sure what actually happened to the trekkers but the most plausible and likely theories are the ones that are dramatised here and presented as the conclusion in the final episode.

The series cleverly uses two styles to tell its story. The hike is shot in black and white and the subsequent investigation is filmed in colour. Flashbacks and backgrounds of the characters are also shot in colour.

The back stories of the older characters mainly concern the war and are completely fictionalised to impart a sense of creepy horror to the series. The indigenous people, the Mansi, are also portrayed as shamanistic communers with nature whose superstitions mesh with the account but are not the cause of the tragedy.

There are hints and suggestions of darker political and military forces at work - this is now in the public domain - which unfortunately led to a rash of conspiracy theories. However, the conclusion reached by the initial and the subsequent investigations seems to be sound and that's the line taken by this programme.

There is enough information made public for the programme makers to have been able to reconstruct most of the hike and the investigation. The conversations are fictional, of course, and the reconstruction of the final hours has, of necessity, to be speculative.

It's a worthy series to watch. The director managed to convey the flavour of the Communist times with élan and accuracy. I didn't quite binge watch, but I had seen all eight episodes within three days. I'm glad I saw this.

Something for everyone!

[saiken-30341 · 10/10 · 27 December 2021]

I had some slight familiarity with the event upon which this show was based. So, for that reason, I was drawn to check it out. But, you need not have any familiarity with the history or the myriad theories about what happened to greatly enjoy this production.

It's got something for everyone. Good production, good score, good acting, physical drama and romance (adult and young adult) People to root for. Even though you will know the outcome all the way through they still manage to build a sense of anticipation.

If they ever dub this I hope they give it the A+ effort. Otherwise, it's better left as is.

What a narrative!

[ilplos · 7/10 · 14 July 2021]

Definitely recommend this tv show to all fans of drama and untold stories. The story keeps intriguing through all episodes and the narrative of splitting the story into two separate and well linked together is defintly worth spending some of hours of watch.

A story based on real events

[Turanic · 8/10 · 24 November 2020]

First of all it's worth mentioning that it's a story based on real events, however the ending of the story is speculative, so the authors try to fit all possible versions of what happened to the group into a working narrative. The filmmakers did a twist with this show, the story is told in two parts happening simultaneously, so you have half of the episodes as a criminal investigation show and the other half as an adventure/thriller. The thriller part is presented in black and white simulating the style of the old soviet Cinema, while the investigation/crime part is coloured. The acting is decent, it reflects the era very well and there are a lot of unexpected plot twits on the way, overall not a bad show at all ...

Mountain of the Dead

[patwander · 7/10 · 21 August 2022]

I can appreciate a nice long book considering the price you pay these days but this particular book should have end about a hundred pages sooner and I would have felt I'd gotten my monies worth. Saved by the female yeti, fine. Meeting the family, fine. All the time spent in caves, NOT fine and could have been so much better written. Corey was called by two last names and that, along with the cave sequences, causes me to question the "facts" presented about the incident. I sincerely hope all the facts were genuine because I love history and combining it within a fictional format is genius. I have already purchased two more of books by this author and I hope they are as good as the first two thirds of this book. Oh, I also hated that Disco had to die but three people wouldn't have fit on one snowmobile. What was the purpose of his going hrough the ice? Did Jeremy submit a shorter finished novel and the publisher wanted more pages believing it would sell better perhaps? Ice sequence, gone. Disco dying, gone. Disco thinking about making a movie based on this adventure, possible? Clearly he would have been a changed man but the show must go on, right? Liked yet sicked about the baby Yeti head. Olivia got what she deserved.

It's like two people wrote this book.

All in all, an amazing book, worth the money. You will have a hard time putting it sown.

8 episodes to tell such a brief story?

[GoodErsatz · 2/10 · 15 June 2021]

Well, we watched the first few episode and we had to gave up. How will they make eight episodes of this? I am telling you: They are watering this down so much it is silly.

Plus they really have a trouble when first episode they introduce a mystery German castle from 20 years previous? Why not stay on the track with one story line?

The truth will be revealed

[alexalex-24423 · 9/10 · 22 November 2020]

There probably ain't a single person, at least not of my age, who wouldn't have heard about this chilling event. 60 years ago, 8 guys and 2 girls - almost all students - went on a ski hike in Ural, but none of 9 who made it to the mountain called by the locals - the Dead Mountain -never made it to the final point. They all disappeared.

Months later their bodies were found, some of them had terrible injuries. They had their eyes and tongues torn out, their ribs were smashed, skulls - fractured. Who or what killed them is still an unsolved mystery... "Dead mountain" promises us to crack the puzzle.

Almost every character of the series has a prototype - a real person from that time. Even the First Russian President Boris Yeltsin gets a cameo - or more like an Easter egg appearance in ep.2. What is more, almost at the same time with them, he could also have gone on that ill-fated expedition but fortunately they ran out of places in the group. However, there are also two fictional characters (with a very touching love story) - KGB major, Kostin and pathologist, Katya.

Kostin examines the area while Katya examins the bodies. Kostin puts forward theories, and Katya is drawing his attention to the details that could lead us to the solution of the century's biggest mystery.

I quite enjoyed the series, and I will definitely watch it over to pay more attention to some important and intriguing details. So don't miss it! Watch and try to speculate about «Dead Mountain» events.

The best movie about Dyatlov Pass Incident

[Kyle-707 · 8/10 · 5 December 2020]

It's so closed to the investigation materials. Actors are great here. The best movie about Dyatlov Pass Incident

Awesome

[chubarova · 9/10 · 6 December 2020]

Of course, I know this real story about death of tourists' group. It has a lot of questions and blind spots. Different people has different versions of what happened. This film has shown all versions. The plot is great, also I like the way of storytelling: 2 storylines - students and investigator. Secondly, the casr is great. So, it's amazing serial about this tradegy.

All secrets will be revealed

[andreev-83318 · 9/10 · 30 November 2020]

It's easier to say who or what had't been suspected to cause the death of the skiers' group led by Igor Dyatlov: fugitive criminals, UFOs, the Bigfoot, local aborigines- all of them seemed to be somehow connected with this mysterious tragedy. Nevertheless, the real truth is still not revealed. I liked an approach of BBC - when its journalists tried to logically justify the incident in their documentary film, partially blaming the death of Soviet students on weather conditions, but then it turned out again that nothing was that simple and straightforward. This understatement has tortured me for a very long time. I would like this case to be solved in every single detail. It is strange to expect the fiction series to cast the light of truth on the old classified case, but still I hoped to get at least some answers to the questions in my head. So, I started watching "Dead Mountain. The Dyatlov Pass Incident"

The series opens up with magnificent views of the snow-covered Northern Ural Mountains. We arrive in Sverdlovsk by helicopter with major Kostin, an elegant, stylish man who is in no hurry to talk about himself and generally asks his colleagues not to spread the news about his arrival. Kostin must investigate the case of Igor Dyatlov and find out the truth. But something about his acts and dark, Poker-style look suggests that it is quite possible that the purpose of his arrival in the Urals is not to find but rather to cover the truth forever. All in all, there are a lot of riddles and we have an opportunity to see how they will be handled.

If you have heard nothing about the structure of the series before, let me indicate the SPOILER ALERT to come. The second episode comes as a total surprise - as it brings up a different storyline. The second, fourth and each even episode is the hike itself with Igor Dyatlov as a central protagonist! And they have a completely different shooting stylistics, but I don't want to steal this "AWE"-factor from you completely. All I can say is that I really did not expect such a twist. In these episodes we are invited to become witnesses of a real reconstruction of the events that had taken place before and during the expedition. I consider both storylines equally fascinating, but still the story of Dyatlov and his friends on a ski trip evokes much more emotions in me.

The thing is that the casting director did a truly titanic job! It should have been so hard to choose the actors. They all look like they just came from old Soviet photos. The guys are smiling, full of hope, the whole world opens up to them, they have no time to be sad. If to believe parents, who grew up in the Soviet Union, back in time the youth was just like that: real, honest and cheerful. The authors of the series were trying to convey through the screen this long-gone spirit of that ambiguous, but at the same time alluring, nostalgic era. Honestly, it sometimes hurts follow the story of Igor Dyatlov because you know that everything will end tragically for them, but now on the screen they are all still alive and so overwhelmed with excitement, enthusiasm, and plans for the better future...

The first episodes of "Dyatlov Pass" keeps you on the edge of your seat. The project's greatest strengths include a tense, eventful plot, as well as an excellent selection of actors who become your family by the third series. I expect something unusual from the denouement, which can bring the 60 years of searching to the truth. For some reason, I have no doubt that the authors of "Dead Mountain. The Dyatlov Pass Incident " will surprise us. The investigation continues!

This mini-series is a hidden gem!

[Erik_Surewaard · 9/10 · 16 August 2023]

Honestly, I stumbled by accident on this series. As someone with an interest in watching movies and series about World War 2 (WW2), my attention got caught by someone mentioning this series. After doing some more research, I indeed found out that it relates to WW2. But what impressed me more, was the overall very positive comments of people that watched this series. So this made me start my journey to find this series...

Since I couldn't really find it back on any of the streaming services that I am subscribed to, I ordered the DVD version. As a movie buff, it is still worthwile to keep a DVD and even VHS player around. You just never know when you will need it...

When I started watching this series, it immediately caught my interest. And I must admit that it caught my attention big time! The storyline is just so awesome! A combination of (mainly) 1950's post war Siberia and (some extensive) flashbacks to the end of WW2 (april 1945), made this a very attractive watch. I was literally on the edge of my seat because of the suspense! It really is one of the best "whodunnit" series that I have ever seen! And the story just gets better and better with each episode.

And who would have expected this from a Russian production. And let us be honest here. Because if you look at the list of 250 (or even 1,000) movies or shows, it isn't really that you see much content from Russia. Yes, I must admit that there are some good movies over the last years. But I would have never thought that before watching "Dead Mountain", I would end up giving it a 9-star IMDb rating! Because yes, that is how high I rate this series. And honestly said, it is seldom that I give such a high rating.

The actors did an excellent job and the scenery is awesome. And the parts that concern WW2 looked very authentic to me. I also liked the fact that each even-numbered episode was looking back in time, whereby you view all events in black-and-white. And if you are not a fan of black-and-white, I suggest you still give it a try. Because the creators of this shows gave a nice nostaligic touch to these black-and-white episodes. And some parts of the music they used, made me even think of the tune use in "The Godfather".

Concluding, I give this series a score of 8.7/10, thereby making it - as already mentioned - a 9-star IMDb rating. This series really deserves to be way better known: in my opinion it deserves a top spot on one of the main streaming services whereby people are recommended to give it a try.

Very good!

[eli_wr · 8/10 · 21 December 2021]

I suggest you watch it. Very different from what we have been fed for decades by the already declined Hollywood and most of European cinema. Nice, smooth plot, but the film direction is the masterpiece.

Superb Prodution . . .

[whatithinkis · 3/10 · 10 October 2021]

On every level and in every way, this is a superb production. For the first three episodes. Then a serious decline on all levels, sometimes bordering on the ridiculous: dialogues, circumstances, story line. And the romance is just silly filler.

what a treat!

[criteodor-41198 · 10/10 · 17 February 2021]

I don't normally write reviews but this is very good acting, writing and the imagery is fantastic; between this and Sputnik it looks like maybe russian horror will be a thing in the future, here's to more.

Thumbs up...

[emholberg · 9/10 · 29 January 2021]

By now this is the BEST cinematographic depiction of the events. Very good.

Very good show!

[fatamorgana-40208 · 8/10 · 12 June 2023]

If your familiar with this story you know there's lots of conspiracy theories surrounding the tragedy that befell these hikers. This show touches on every one of them and a few I wasn't aware of. It blends folklore mythology, nazi experiments, UFO invaders, and the KGB as potential suspects without ever crossing the line to silly tropes or unbelievable explanations. It is shot beautifully. The snow scenes and mountain shots are amazing, and they give a great perspective of what these hikers were up against. It is shot in black and white and in color which lends a gritty, realistic vibe. The ending was very satisfying too. This show was focused throughout the eight episodes and never wavered from telling the most logical truth. Very well done!!

The best Russian series ever

[mariazammler · 10/10 · 9 February 2021]

I am proud of Russia because they have made a perfect plot and vintage shooting

I believe it

[bguess-12361 · 10/10 · 25 August 2022]

I totally believe the conclusions this series makes at the end. They died heroes. Who could have asked for a better bunch of friends. I loved that it explored all of the conspiracy theories. It explained all of them so well without making light of them. Each was taken seriously and evaluated. It shows how suddenly one event and a mistake can change the course of peoples lives. Even when you are prepared and experienced you can never outrun fate.