Prisoner of the Mountains | Oleg Menshikov, Sergei Bodrov Jr.

Prisoner of the Mountains | Oleg Menshikov, Sergei Bodrov Jr. | A Tragic and Triumpante Forgien Film!

DVDs:

Prisoner of the Mo...

	Prisoner of the Mountains Oleg Menshikov, Sergei Bodrov Jr. MGM (Video & DVD), 2003 average customer review:based on 35 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Two Russian soldiers - a fresh recruit named Vanya and a hardened veteran named Sacha - are taken hostage by Chechen guerillas after a deadly ambush leaves all of their comrades dead. Their captor a battle-weary village elder wants to use them as a bartering tool to get back his own son held prisoner by the Russian army. But when the trade goes sour and all trust is broken Vanya and Sacha realize their hours are numbered and attempt to escape before they're forced to join their comrades in death.System Requirements:Starring: Sergei Bodrov Jr. Susanna Mekhralieva Oleg Menshikov Djemal Sikharulidze Directed By: Sergei Bodrov Running Time: 99 Min. Color Copyright 2003 MGM Studios.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: R UPC: 027616887498 Manufacturer No: 1004708

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Appreciation

Under the limited Russian titles available for us to purchase. This film echo's my wish for more Russian films to be made. A great example of being a supporter of indi films. High in character development under a low budget circumstance. The dialogues are genuine. The environment is captivating. An excellent anti-war film. Great price!

A Tragic and Triumpante Forgien Film!

This was truely a good film.

WARNING POSSIBLE SPOILERS

It's a tale about Russia being at war with Chechnya. There are two solders involved, Sasha (Oleg Menshikov, from "Burnt by the Sun", which I hope to God I never see), a very Chechnyan hating solder, and Vanya(Sergei Bodrov Jr, God rest his soul), a younger naive, yet more openminded solder. They both get captured by the Chechnyans, after their platoon has been killed.

It so happens that the Chechnyan who's holding the men hostage other sons have died, except one son who is currently being held a prisoner by the Russians. So he plans to trade the two solders for his son.

Well while they're being held prioners, some themes come into the plot. The most important, comradeship and friendship. Heck even Vanya falls in love with a girl who is like about 13 or 14 years old, and he's either in his late teens or his early to late twenties. But this girl happens to be the daughter of the Chechnyan who is holding them hostage.

Vanya and Sasha must help each other escape so that they don't suffer the same fate as their platoon.

This is a very sad film that sends out the message that the Chechnyans and Russians must get along or there will be no end to this war!

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Tovarich

I was rather confused about "The Prisoner of the Mountains" from the synopsis and reviews I read. I postponed ordering the DVD because of that. What I saw when I finally watched the movie was one of the most outstanding anti-war movies I have seen. I won't delve too far into the plot because what I watched took me by surprise and I wouldn't want to spoil that for anyone else.

The story is about two Russian soldiers who are captured in an ambush by Chetnyn rebels. A Chetnyn father had asked for a hostage as ransom for his son. He got two instead. What happens after that point is the essence of the film.

While the storyline is very compelling, I really enjoyed the setting for the movie. High in the Causcasion mountains in a village that couldn't have been designed by any set director, I witnessed a world that I was grateful to be able to see. The Chetnyn village was a step back a century or so.

The events that transpired were a transcension of cultures in a way that left a lasting impression. That impression was very satisfying but it became all the more educational with the ending. At first I sensed a transition from hope to dispair but I understood the director's message to be that the hope is real but it will take some work by all parties.

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Compelling view of the Russian war in Chechnya during the 90s

Two Russian soldiers, a seasoned sergeant and a raw recruit, are captured in an ambush by Chechen separatists during the war in Chechnya in the 90s. The leader of the guerrillas wants the captives to exchange for his son who is being held by the Russians. The captives are taken to a small village high in the mountains where they are chained to each other to prevent their escape. Initially the battle-hardened, cynical sergeant has little time for the youngster, and they almost come to blows several times. As the film develops, they develop a friendship, the sergeant becoming a mentor to the younger soldier. We also learn a great deal about small town life of the Chechens, some of their customs and habits. Both the Chechen and Russians develop a grudging respect for each other during their close interaction, even if they are at war. The tense, tragic ending of the film is particularly well done.

This is nominally a war film, but there isn't very much action, it is largely character driven. The primary interest of this film will be, for most viewers, to see and experience some of the moral complexities of the Chechen war from a Russian perspective. From an American's perspective, many of the issues discussed in this film are probably relevant the US occupation of Iraq and (more directly relevant) Afghanistan. The political issues surrounding the war are not discussed at all, this is really a study of the effect of the war on those who actually have to do the fighting and dying. I think some of the most glowing reviews overrate this film a bit (it isn't something you are going to watch over and over again), but it is still a very nice story. The developing, complex relationships between the captives and their captors are well portrayed. These are a people at war, but both sides come to realize that the others are not animals. The cinematography is outstanding. I never realized how bleak and forboding the landscape of the Caucasus was (having never been there myself). This alone is worth the price of admission.

Bottom line - not destined to be an all time classic, but definitely worth a look, particularly if you want to learn a little bit about Chechnya or the Russian-Chechan war.

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An unlikely war film

I first saw this film in the spring of 2001 in my Modern Russian Culture class and enjoyed it, so it was a pleasure to finally revisit it so many years later, particularly since it stars two of the best Russian actors in recent times, Oleg Menshikov and Sergey Bodrov, Jr. (who would star together again three years later in 'East-West'). Though it's never explicitly spelled out, we know that this is set during the disastrous Chechen conflict and takes place in Chechnya. People used to American war movies might complain because it seems pretty slow-paced in comparison, with not a lot of action, but that's because this is a character-driven film. It proceeds at the leisurely pace so we can get to know the characters and watch as their relationships unfold. It makes the viewer think about things like the futility of war, whether there really are clear-cut good guys and bad guys, and what happens when cultures collide.

Private Ivan Zhilin (Vanya), played by Bodrov, has just joined the Army and been sent into Chechnya. Not long after arriving, his party is ambushed, and only he and the sergeant, Aleksandr Kostylin (Sasha), played by Menshikov, are left alive. The two of them are taken prisoner by the rebels. Normally they'd only take one hostage, but this time they decide to take both in case one of them should die of his injuries before they're able to use them as a bargaining chip. They end up in chains in the house of Abdul Murat, whose son has been taken prisoner by the Russians. While in captivity, these two soldiers, who are complete opposites, find themselves developing an unlikely friendship, with Sasha even becoming a bit of a father figure to Vanya, who doesn't have a father. They also develop unlikely friendships with Hasan, the tongueless man who is guarding them, and Dina, Abdul's beautiful 13 year old daughter. The plot thickens when Abdul orders them to write to their mothers asking them to come to the area and ask for a prisoner exchange. Sasha doesn't have parents, but Vanya's mother is absolutely devoted to him, and he is confident that she's going to come through for him no matter what. Overall, it shows the human side of war instead of endless battles and an us vs. them mentality, nor does it have the typical ending one would expect from an American film. The photography is also absolutely gorgeous.

This film is highly recommended to those who are interested in anti-war films, particularly when they're such a radical change of pace from the types of films made in Hollywood. The acting is also first-rate, in spite of not being a very action-packed film. It's a pity so few of the films of Oleg Menshikov and Sergey Bodrov, Jr. are available in the West. Menshikov had been established as one of Russia's best younger actors for awhile, but this was only Bodrov's second film, and helped to make him one of Russia's most popular rising young stars. Knowing he was killed in an avalanche in September of 2002 at the age of only 30 makes watching some parts of this film, given the perceived nearness of death and the topics of conversation the characters sometimes have, even sadder and more poignant. What a waste of looks and talent. Also very notable is the young woman playing Dina, the Chechen girl who forms an unlikely friendship with Vanya and whom Vanya falls in love with. And what with barely any films having been made about the Chechen war, this can help to give the Western viewer an insightful look into what it was all about, beyond simplistic media headlines.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

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