El diluvio

A grand epic based on the writings of Henryk Sienkiewicz, The Deluge presents to its audience a gritty world saturated with betrayal and ruin, heroism and patriotism. Outstanding costume design paired with a brilliant cast led to a greatly rich depiction of Slavic aristocracy. Daniel Olbrychski's larger-than-life portrayal of Andrzej Kmicic aptly accomplishes the solemn bearing of a nobleman combined with hints of mania and barbarity.

The story engrosses with its beautiful cinematography, excellent character development, and cultural and historical insights into the Polish nation. The Deluge falls nothing short of monumental.

"Potop" ("The Deluge") is the film that every Pole knows almost by heart. It is shown on TV every year, either at Christmas time or at Easter - and yet we watch it over and over again and we are never bored with it. There are many reasons for it, like superb acting by some of the greatest Polish actors, especially by Olbrychski as Kmicic (although I personally don't like him very much in his other roles, he just WAS Kmicic - passionate, quick-tempered, desperately in love with Olenka and not too politically wise) and the gripping story covering a tragic period in the history of my nation (that is the Swedish "deluge" as we call it - the 17th century war between Poland and Sweden, when Swedish armies invaded our land and some noble families betrayed the Polish king and accepted Gustavus Karolus).

One of the strongest elements of the film is the care with which the director and the whole crew depicted the 17th century Poland, with the costumes, traditions and food. As an anecdote I can tell you, that at the time the average family saw ham only at Christmas, and never in such amounts as you can see in the film - and yet what you see on the table in the picture is real hams, game and poultry...

The devotion and passion of all the crew members show in the film - and that is why it involves us, the viewers even after so many years. But the most important thing is that whether you know Polish history or not, you will find in the movie some general truths about war, about how it influences peoples' lives, and how the sacrifice of one man can change the course of history. It will also tell you something about the Poles - yes, we are rebellious, we are quarrelsome, and yet we are ready to die for things that are sacred to us - like the abbey in Czestochowa, the "home" of the national treasure: the painting of Madonna, the Queen of Poland.

So watch it and enjoy - it's on my personal list of top 10 films of all times, all nations.

Never ever watched a movie to march this wave of involvement of both the makers and a viewer. It leaves one exhausted, transported, elated, weeping and hopeful all at once as well as re-discovering the polish character as a mere tour wont do. All inherent aspects like camerawork, artistry and production surely measure up. Academy awards ain't doing enough credit, to my taste. Me i can think of only 2 other movies of late to shake me thoroughly. But this one shows an altogether different country against what they project these days, a deeper, resolved, committed and mightier one. Not least, they establish a woman the driving force of entire human history. Glory.

The great thing about this movie is the big armies of extras in period gear, and they don't do it just for one big battle but over and over throughout the movie to the point of being gratuitous (in a good way). Way better than CGI of course. Plus the details of weapons, armor, horse riding and locations all look nice. So it's a satisfying exploration of the historical setting.

There are several moments where the development of battles doesn't make sense, and the battles sometimes turn into confused mass melees just like Hollywood depictions. And the cannon practical effects are not very good, but at least they are not as bad as in The Good, The Bad and the Ugly.

The movie is only average at trying to communicate the brutality of hand to hand warfare. Nor does it communicate the severity of the tragedy that befell Poland at this time. It's supposed to be a nationalist story about one of the most terrible episodes of Polish history yet it mostly depicts it like a PG-13 fantasy adventure. There is a little bit of (rather mild) atrocity/brutality but not enough for a 4.5 hour movie and, bizarrely, it is only ever done by Poles.

The main character starts off fairly unlikeable, and while things improve when the plot gets going the slow development is a problem for such a long movie. The only character who stands out as enjoyable is Colonel Zagloba.

There is a confusing moment where a character, last seen alive and well, suddenly turns up wounded and unconscious being pulled on a sled. It's a colossal screwup that the writers apparently couldn't find time to work such a pivotal event into a 4.5 hour movie. Anyway just know before you watch that when the character turns up wounded, it's from an offscreen event and not some sort of flashback or whatever.

A highly recommended great patriotic film, 4 hours long but still a real feast for all lovers of novels by Sienkiewicz. This is truly a deep insight into the terrible beast that is war. Bravery, cowardice, romanticism, cruelty, friendship, blood - all is here, and all add to the masterpiece of Mr. Hoffman. Pay attention to the excellent play of the main hero, Adam Kmicic, mastered by the national Polish star Daniel Olbrychski. You feel both empathy and sympathy to him in all his heroic and tragic endeavors, yet he perseveres and wins in the end. This is a film not only for Poles or Russians (this movie was and is a great success in my homeland), but if you are interested in the 17th's century history and the events of the Swedish attack on Poland, this is the story for you.