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I watched the film twice, first its old version, then the restored one and I have to say I can not describe it easily with few words. I found it rather boring and slow paced, which is hardly the best way to depict one of the most important periods in world history, dominated by the paramount figure of Napoleon. I do not want to go into many details, so I shall limit myself with several remarks: The Russian military uniforms are awful and incorrect in many ways, especially the uniforms of the cossacks, which really made me laugh... There are too few extras to depict realistically such an important battle of the Napoleonic period. Several hundred infantrymen and cavalrymen simply can not achieve the effect, achieved for example by Sergei Bondarchuk in "War and peace", where he had 15 000 extras. The difference between the battle scenes in the two films is huge! The emperors of Russia and Austria, Aleksandr I and Franz I, as well as the key figures among their respective staffs, including Mikhail Ilarionovich Kutuzov, are depicted in a rather grotesque and sneering way, which, I think, is not the right for a serious history movie. The cast is good. Pierre Mondy does a solid job portraying Napoleon, Jean Marais is a truly convincing Carnot, Claudia Cardinale is marvelous as always and Jack Palance is a credible Weyrother. As a conclusion: the film deserves to be watched once. After that everyone interested in the history of the Napoleonic wars should go on with "War and Peace' and "Waterloo".

Well... It's so easy to say that a movie is pathetic, or laughable or something like that! But before doing so with this particular movie, we must have in mind the following things: the filming started in 1989, as a risky private enterprise run by the team Getsov - Belovski. They have done a significant documentary research, with the help of the writers Petar Cholov and Petar Lazarov. Most of the filming was done in my hometown Bourgas, on the Black Sea coast. For the purpose, the creators of the film used an abandoned peer in the Bourgas port. They also succeeded in getting some funding from an American company and shot several scenes in the U.S. The cast was formed mostly by enthusiasts, who, and I must admit it, have negligible acting ability. From the beginning it was a daring idea, which was very difficult to realize - at the end of 1989 Bulgaria was already going through the political changes, which virtually destroyed the Bulgarian cinema as a whole. The film was left unfinished and it took some 8 years before it could be seen in the cinemas across Bulgaria. Yes, the film has its setbacks! But it is the first and the only movie, which deals, and I must say correctly, with the life of Dan Kolov, probably the most famous and legendary Bulgarian wrestler, who never accepted American citizenship and was always announced as a Bulgarian wrestler. There is a real event, which did not find place in the movie, but which could serve as the best depiction of Dan Kolov - when he arrived in Paris, where he was about to wrestle for the European Championship, a French customs officer asked for his papers and received an old and almost disintegrated I.D. card. It was Dan Kolov's Bulgarian I.D., which he kept for 20 years since his departure from the motherland, and which accompanied him in all his international tours! The customs officer later said that it was the first time in his long career that he saw such a thing! And here we can find the greatest value of the movie - it keeps the memory of the great Dan Kolov alive!!! And that is the reason that makes people, who are not drunk, and not incredibly stupid, to rate it with 9 or 10!!!

When Giuliano Gemma came to Bulgaria in 1970, on a working trip, he was very surprised to find out that he had already achieved some kind of a "legendary" status among the Bulgarian moviegoers. One of the reasons for that was "Per pochi dollari ancora", which had had its premiere in 1967... The plot of the movie is not typical for the most Spaghetti-Westerns. It is set in the late spring of 1865, immediately after the end of the American Civil war. A young Confederate lieutenant and POW, named Gary Diamond, is asked by the C-in-C of a Federal POW camp to accompany two of his men /capt. Lefevre and sgt. Pitt/ on a special mission - to give the commander of Fort Yuma a warning of an impending attack against it, prepared by the ex-Confederate 5th Colorado rgt., Diamond's ex-unit, commanded by major Sanders. The task is very complicated and tricky, because in the same time major Sanders has a different plan - to sneak in Fort Yuma through the so-called Red Mines, together with the gang of Nelson Riggs, an infamous villain, and steal a great sum of money. Of course Sanders's men of 5th rgt. are doomed - Fort Yuma is very well defended and their purpose is only to divert the attention of the Federal soldiers. Diamond, Lefevre and Pitt begin their dangerous mission and some new elements of the puzzle are added... The film contains a lot of action. There is one particularly good fighting sequence, when Giuliano Gemma shoots dead one of Riggs's henchmen /played superbly by Benito Stefanelli/- the sequence is very short and breath-taking, but is also perfectly executed. The cast is solid - particularly Gemma himself, Sophie Daumiers /as Connie Breastfull, the inevitable faithful and beautiful girl, who falls for Diamond/ and Nello Pazzafini as the tough sgt. Pitt. But the actors, who play the villains, are marvelous - Dan Vadis is memorable as the tough, crude and unmannerly Riggs, who nevertheless possesses certain charm. Many consider the role of major Sanders too small /and even a waste of talents/ for Jacques Sernas, but his cold and aristocratic presence is one of the key features of the movie. And not to forget the unforgettable performance of Angel del Pozo as the sly, treacherous and sarcastic capt. Lefevre. I like very much the march of 5th Colorado rgt towards Fort Yuma - it is indeed impressive and, in my opinion, catches the spirit of the historic time in which the film is set. And I should not forget to mention the wonderful soundtrack, composed by Gianni Ferrio, which is already available on CD. Anyway, this is a very interesting and entertaining western, which must be seen. It is already available on DVD, so there isn't any problem finding it. And it is definitely a must for the numerous fans of Giuliano Gemma!