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Product Description
During World War II, seven prisoners break out from a high security prison and take refuge in a god-forsaken village. With no time to catch their breath, the escapees are faced with a new trial, as a German subversion group appears in the neighbourhood. Overnight the recent enemies of the state turn into its ardent defenders. War ruins the fates of millions of people, but sometimes war is what it takes to make the complete rogues recollect what it means to be human.
Product Description
United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: LANGUAGES: Russian ( Dolby Digital 2.0 ), Russian ( Dolby Digital 5.1 ), English ( Subtitles ), ANAMORPHIC WIDESCREEN (1.78:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Anamorphic Widescreen, Interactive Menu, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: It is 1941 and the Battle of Kiev and the brutal massacre of Babi Yar are terrifying the nation. When a Soviet penitentiary falls into disorder after being threatened by the Nazis, a group of hardened prisoners make their escape. Only seven make it out alive and led by 'Picasso', an outsider amongst the men, they take refuge in an isolated village. But soon the village is threatened by a group of subversive Nazis and the only chance of survival is to defend a Motherland that has showed them no mercy. ...Black Sheep (2010)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
22 of 22 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
This film is set in 1941 Russia after the battle of Kiev (the box tells us that). It opens at a penal transit camp, where a new Major has arrived; his first job is to offer redemption to these prisoners. They are allowed to join a penal battalion. For those not familiar with how this concept worked, this was basically a death sentence, as the penal battalions were always given nasty and or suicidal missions. Surprisingly none of them volunteer.
The Major then instructs his Captain to send some guards with a dozen prisoners to a nearby ammunition dump - they are to destroy it to prevent it falling into the hands of the rapidly advancing Germans. So far so good, on the way they are attacked by German fighter bombers, and in the chaos, seven escape. There are two main characters, `Father' who is the nominal leader of the convicts, and `Picasso' so called because of his love of painting. He is a shadowy figure who says he knows of a hamlet that is not on any maps. They can make it to his aunt's house and hole up there.
His aunt is not there and appears to have been arrested for spying. Without doing any plot spoilers, they then discover she is incredibly well stocked up on food and ammunition.
Enter the Nazis; they too seem to know of the existence of the hamlet and the aunties house. They have parachuted behind the lines and are a nasty bunch. The Major has now seen Picasso's prison file and decides everything must be done to get him.
That is the scene setting for the crux of the film. The convicts are now faced with two enemies and have to decide what to do. This is a well directed (Sergey Chekalov) and acted film. It gets a bit confusing if you don't pay attention as the battle lines are some what blurred. The clothing and arms are very authentic, and the supporting cast all do a good job. It does have some action, but not throughout. This though is one of the better films that has come out of Russia of late and should be praised for tackling a unique part of WW2 in a different way. In Russian and German with good subtitles and a run time of 119 minutes, hard to compare it to other films, but if you like `Star' you will probably find this one appealing too.
The Major then instructs his Captain to send some guards with a dozen prisoners to a nearby ammunition dump - they are to destroy it to prevent it falling into the hands of the rapidly advancing Germans. So far so good, on the way they are attacked by German fighter bombers, and in the chaos, seven escape. There are two main characters, `Father' who is the nominal leader of the convicts, and `Picasso' so called because of his love of painting. He is a shadowy figure who says he knows of a hamlet that is not on any maps. They can make it to his aunt's house and hole up there.
His aunt is not there and appears to have been arrested for spying. Without doing any plot spoilers, they then discover she is incredibly well stocked up on food and ammunition.
Enter the Nazis; they too seem to know of the existence of the hamlet and the aunties house. They have parachuted behind the lines and are a nasty bunch. The Major has now seen Picasso's prison file and decides everything must be done to get him.
That is the scene setting for the crux of the film. The convicts are now faced with two enemies and have to decide what to do. This is a well directed (Sergey Chekalov) and acted film. It gets a bit confusing if you don't pay attention as the battle lines are some what blurred. The clothing and arms are very authentic, and the supporting cast all do a good job. It does have some action, but not throughout. This though is one of the better films that has come out of Russia of late and should be praised for tackling a unique part of WW2 in a different way. In Russian and German with good subtitles and a run time of 119 minutes, hard to compare it to other films, but if you like `Star' you will probably find this one appealing too.
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
First a few specifics for you and thats the film is in Russian and German with subtitles which are optional so no dubbing for those who are not keen on subtitles.The feature is available to watch in 2.0 or 5.1 audio and there are no other features but scene selections at the main menu.
The setting is a Russian prison camp holding criminals during WWII,the so called black sheep.The German offensive will soon overrun the camp and so a rather sadistic and dare i say stereotypical Russian Captain is sent to close the camp before the Germans get there.Here we enter the main group of characters,prisoners that were already planning an escape and who are sent on one last working party.During this they escape and don a couple of Russian uniforms and weapons.Throw into this a local village devoid of male occupants who are keen on helping the escapees beleiving them to be brave Russian soldiers a German parachute platoon dropping in and being hunted by the sadistic Captain it all makes for an enjoyable film.
The prisoners are pretty diverse in their characteristics and are lead by "Father".All of the actors do a more than adequate job and are competently directed.The subtitles are clear,concise and easy to read which is always nice.As far as i am aware the weapons and costumes(military enthusiasts may know better) looked correct and detailed if only a little too new looking.There is very little cgi in the film and what there is has been done so its not too noticeable.Now the reason its getting three stars is because there isnt enough detail going in to why a certain prisoner(Picasso)was wanted more by the Captain than the others,what had he done which made him so special?.What was in his file?At times it was a little confusing as to who was fighting against who and what for.None of which is explained in the movie.My overall verdict is that it is an enjoyable little film which takes a not often trodden path of WWII films and one which i will watch again.It is better than a lot of war films released recently even if it was a little vague at times.
The setting is a Russian prison camp holding criminals during WWII,the so called black sheep.The German offensive will soon overrun the camp and so a rather sadistic and dare i say stereotypical Russian Captain is sent to close the camp before the Germans get there.Here we enter the main group of characters,prisoners that were already planning an escape and who are sent on one last working party.During this they escape and don a couple of Russian uniforms and weapons.Throw into this a local village devoid of male occupants who are keen on helping the escapees beleiving them to be brave Russian soldiers a German parachute platoon dropping in and being hunted by the sadistic Captain it all makes for an enjoyable film.
The prisoners are pretty diverse in their characteristics and are lead by "Father".All of the actors do a more than adequate job and are competently directed.The subtitles are clear,concise and easy to read which is always nice.As far as i am aware the weapons and costumes(military enthusiasts may know better) looked correct and detailed if only a little too new looking.There is very little cgi in the film and what there is has been done so its not too noticeable.Now the reason its getting three stars is because there isnt enough detail going in to why a certain prisoner(Picasso)was wanted more by the Captain than the others,what had he done which made him so special?.What was in his file?At times it was a little confusing as to who was fighting against who and what for.None of which is explained in the movie.My overall verdict is that it is an enjoyable little film which takes a not often trodden path of WWII films and one which i will watch again.It is better than a lot of war films released recently even if it was a little vague at times.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
This movie is Russian with English subtitles. The film has an 'arty' feel and a realisitc look that have probably been helpful in allowing it to cross over to the international market. Whereas there is clearly a lot of suffering in the context of the movie with Russians fighting Nazis, there are some very heart-warming scenes that convey strong positive feelings across the language barrier.
If you feel like an evening of sheer concentration staring at the subtitles, then I am sure you will find the direction and the screenplay are both well worth the effort.
There is an undercurrent in the plot about separation and another about finding love in a hateful time.
The end is good!
If you feel like an evening of sheer concentration staring at the subtitles, then I am sure you will find the direction and the screenplay are both well worth the effort.
There is an undercurrent in the plot about separation and another about finding love in a hateful time.
The end is good!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Not Pavlov's Dogs
understand very little about the history. For many this is perhaps why the film appears confusing. This was no black and white affair but imbued with shades of varying grey. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Dr. Delvis Memphistopheles
Promised More than it Delivered
This is a Russian production with English subtitles and no English language overdub.
The plot revolves around a group of criminals who escape from a Russian prison during... Read more
The plot revolves around a group of criminals who escape from a Russian prison during... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Lova
War: only different
There are many stories of the Second World War on film. Black Sheep provides a rather different take on the genre though. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Paul B
OK, but not something I would watch again.
Where do I start!?
I have never seen a Russian film before and after watching this offering, I am unlikely to watch another. Read more
I have never seen a Russian film before and after watching this offering, I am unlikely to watch another. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Mellow Yellow
Difficult to really appreciate what's going on
At the start of the film a group of convicts that are assigned to destroy an ammunition dump before the advancing German forces arrive, unknown to them once they've completed their... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Finn Newick
Faulty Disc
I can't fully review the film due to the fact that after about 40 mins some digital artefacts started to creep in giving a few pixelated frames. Then the film just stopped. Read more
Published 6 months ago by silkobilko
The Russian Dirty Dozen
I was gripped by this film for most of its running time and felt that the insight it gave into an area of history I never studied was well worth the occasional low points. Read more
Published 6 months ago by David Pearce
weak
This movie is not one i would recommend. The plot is very weak and the acting is very bad. No wonder it went straight to DVD.
Published 6 months ago by S. Paterson
Grimly fascinating
This is a Russian film with all the dialogue in Russian or German with subtitle. If you don't like sub-titles then this film is not for you. Read more
Published 7 months ago by A. Skudder
Enjoyable and engaging
It's an engaging and original war film. There's a fine degree of tension throughout, with a real sense of menace as the roguish escapee prisoners hide in a tiny, impoverished... Read more
Published 7 months ago by R. Tait
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