nikola_bg-25486 Reviews

Lady of Csejte (2015)

Good movie as a whole, with some problems

[7/10 · 4 September 2023]

Loosely based on the story of Elizabeth Bathory, almost turning it into a fairytale. I have no problem with such an approach, but there are some serious plot holes in this story. Sometimes you wonder why is this character doing this and why this man is with this woman, when they should be enemies, not a couple... (I'm avoiding putting spoilers, so no more details).

The setting is splendid - Corvin Castle in Transylvania. Much bigger than the actual castle of Elizabeth Bathory (I've visited both). The costumes are fine. The acting probably not so good. It's not a disaster, though.

Overall, probably among the better films about Bathory in recent years.

Mary Queen of Scots (2018)

Pathetic and absurd

[1/10 · 13 March 2023]

Historic authenticity? None. Skill or talent? None. Lame attempt to make a modern and fake version of history in order to push stupid and evil propaganda? Yes! Avoid this movie like the plague, it really is horrible. It could be regarded as a joke. Or an example of how not to make a historic movie. Or any movie, actually. We can only hope that they will stop making such pseudo movies and try to create real stuff again. If not, we always have cinema from other parts of the world like Europe, Asia... There, they put people in the cast based on talent, not race. In other words, they are not racists.

Hellraiser (2022)

Boring and bland.

[1/10 · 19 October 2022]

A truly horrible movie. A weak cast of amateur actors playing bland characters. Boring story, Horrible dialogues. No music. And some wierd "modern" elements with no value whatsoever. I really don't know what they were thinking, doing some quick buck, I guess. But when you have zero skill or talent, you can't achieve a good result. Here, the result is not just bad, it is a disaster. One of the worst horror movies of the year.

Avoid it and watch the very first Hellraiser instead. It was genuine and made with talent, something that is in very short supply in 2022.

This 2022 garbage will soon be forgotten.

Sound of Metal (2019)

Boring and predictable with a weak cast

[1/10 · 17 June 2022]

First of all, the cast is pretty weak. You don't care about any of the characters. The story itself is nothing new. The Wrestler (2007) is a much better take on these problems. But of course it had Mickey Rourke. Here none of the actors can match his talent.

I Spit on Your Grave (2010)

Revenge is a dish best served cold

[8/10 · 19 February 2022]

This is a pretty decent revenge movie. Actually, I was pleasantly surprised by it. The story is good, the acting as well. The girl was pretty smart and cruel in taking her revenge and I liked that.

In short, this is one of the better revenge movies released in recent years.

The Barber of Siberia (1998)

A gem of the European cinema

[10/10 · 11 September 2021]

Russia was (and still is, I guess) a land of extremes. Here, Nikita Mikhalkov presents it masterfully, mainly through the eyes of the American Jane (played by the fabulous Julia Ormond). The story itself is epic, full of emotions. It has lots of comedy moments. It will make you laugh and sometimes, it will make you cry. That's why this movie reminds me of Charlie Chaplin, he managed to do the same. And it's a very hard thing to achieve, it takes a genius and Nikita Mikhalkov surely succeeded. He appears in one scene as Emperor Alexander II, probably one of the most serious moments in the movie, yet it still has a touch of comedy.

In short - an epic, bittersweet love story with splendid landscapes and costumes. And it's not "Hollywood style". It's down to earth and humane, sincere and honest. That's what makes it so captivating. A true masterpiece.

Watch it and it will stay with you for a long time.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (2015 Video Game)

Best game I have ever played. A milestone.

[10/10 · 26 April 2020]

Being a veteran gamer, I can honestly say that this is the best game I have ever played in my life. Never before had I seen such a great and well presented story and such a massive scale of the world, of the quests, of virtually everything. The game made me read the books and I am thankful for that, because they are pretty good too! The start of the story looks simple - Geralt must find Ciri. Of course, this turns out to be a very difficult task, leading to a number of plot-twists. But there are also the side quests, almost all of them equally interesting, not trivial at all. You must make choices, moral choices. In many cases there is no right or wrong choice and I like that. The story, the writting is of stellar quality. It's like a book - a well-written one. I started to care about the fate of the characters. Geralt, Yen, Ciri, Triss - but not just them, the main characters. Also many of the people from the side quests. OK, some of them are not people... I really care for them, I share their emotions, their joy and sadness. This is very hard to achieve in a video game, but the Witcher 3 does it! (I will point out one of many great quests - "A towerful of mice" - it still sends chills down my spine!) The graphics are great, the interface is pretty good and easy to use, the voice acting is superb. The open world is HUGE and above all - full of life! It is divided into several regions, each with its own identity, climate, landsape, culture, lore. The story and the characters are what makes this game the best ever, You'll never want this adventure to end, you'll keep thinking about the world of the Witcher. Play the game - you wont regret it. It sets a standard. It's a milestone. Also, read the books and now you can watch the Witcher series too. I can only hope that CDPR will make another witcher game (actually I am sure they will do that!) (This is my first review on imdb. I am surprised to see games here, but this one deserves it, for it has such a compelling story)