Mission London

For years, I've heard Bulgarian audiences wonder why we cannot produce a movie that holds up when compared to Hollywood comedies. Well, now we have. And the result is pretty satisfying. The first thing that struck me about the movie was how professionally it was made. The camera-work, the editing, the sound mixing, everything was of a pretty high standard, which is not something that Bulgarian films have recently managed. The acting was generally mediocre and the dialogue was sloppy at times, but overall all scenes were watchable, even the more talky ones. The focus of the movie was not in the performances anyway. The tempo was brilliant. At one point I thought the scenes were too short and the film would lack cohesiveness, but by the ending this style of editing makes sense and the film plays great, seeming neither too short, nor too long. While this is predominantly a comedy, deeper themes are there and they are examined in a non-intrusive way even if they are mainly Bulgarian-specific. Being able to understand all the jokes will enhance the viewing immensely but that does not mean that foreign audiences will not appreciate the film.

Overall I give it 8/10 simply because the movie is head and shoulders above any Bulgarian comedy that has been attempted in the last decades. For non-Bulgarian audiences the film is a solid 7.

I've never really appreciated the "modern" Bulgarian humor. It always has to be vulgar and obvious... not to mention repetitive. When I walked into the theater I was expecting to be bored out of my mind and if lucky to catch some Z's. I was pleasantly surprised. The movie had taste. The comedy was well thought through. The plot was interesting and hard to predict. While blown out of proportions Mission London perfectly describes Bulgarian mentality and way of life. And for a nation that gets things done half way this movie was almost perfect with no cutbacks and unnecessary BS.

I'm glad this movie wasn't a disappointment. And will gladly watch it again.

This is a hilarious movie, especially for Bulgarians. I am not sure how much of it will be comprehensible for a foreign audience, and I'm looking forward to some non-Bulgarian reviews. Anyway, there is a lot to laugh about. The film presents in a very benign, comical way many of the shortcomings and limitations of the Bulgarian mindset. The First Lady, the Ambassador, the embassy cook - the characters are fleshy and ring true, yet very funny. I also liked the cinematography. The soundtrack was cool, but a few Bulgarian songs could definitely be added for more authenticity. All in all Mission London is definitely worth watching if you want to know more about the peculiarities and daily challenges of the Bulgarian spirit.

Mission London never gets boring and entertains 100%. The actors - most of them very well known to the Bulgarian public and completely unknown to the rest of the world, are full of qualities and motivation to do their best. That makes them very persuasive. In fact this movie is so good, if it was a woman I would have married her brother (Bulgarian way of expressing). Of course it will be fair to say that the humor in the film is directed a little bit more towards the Bulgarians, there are some specific touches connected with the Bulgarian culture and style of living that the Bulgarians will grasp more effectively than others. So in my opinion that makes the film more enjoyable for a Bulgarian than anybody else. But nevertheless this one is a fine piece of a movie. If you watch carefully you will eventually know something more about Bulgarians and a lot more about the way they organize foreign adventures.

I'm not giving this movie a 10 just because I'm a Bulgarian. I laughed really hard - something that hasn't happened for years watching a Hollywood production. Yes, it wasn't a deep, meaningful movie, but who expects that from a comedy?!? The script was really original, nothing like the comedies I've seen in the last few years. We should admit at least that - we tried to do something different. That's the main reason this movie deserves an excellent rate - it's nothing like the movies we are used to watch. No hollow and unreal love story, no happy ending, no glorifying the nation. It's the exact opposite of that - short fling; interesting and unexpected, yet the only believable ending; exposing the main features (mostly the bad ones) of our nation. Shortly - the real life. And may be the main reason this movie has to be watched is to contribute the Bulgarian cinema - we showed talent and ambition, probably over time we will make something really great!