Litsid: The Whores

I found this being played on... New Zealand public television, of all places! I really liked it. A bit slow at first, but then it gets interesting enough that you just want to see one more episode, and then one more, and one more... Gives a lovely historical context to something that many people have been taught about in school - WW2 and how warring nations occupied and bombed Northern Europe - but seeing it through the eyes of prostitutes is much more memorable than seeing a documentary, I think. Well worth a look! A couple of verrrrry cringy moments though, such as Mrs Falkenberg trying to speak in Estonian with a "German accent" - please just hang in there. These moments will pass :)

This series tells the story of a small country in the turmoils of WWII through the eyes of the employees of an elite brothel. The premise is quite interesting, and as I like unconventional heroes, I was sold. Plus, the show got plenty oh hype about the extensive research and preparations to capture the essence of that period. And yet, the show doesn't live up to its hype, although with interesting setting and subject matter, the show feels uninspired and unimaginative most of the time. The first couple of episodes were quite dull and boring, with wooden acting and static directing (throughout the show there were moments were camera sat still, and then suddenly started to move, almost like the director got a sudden flash of, oh we got to move the camera or the picture feels static). The characters developed over time and became more lively changing the wooden dolls with real humane characters, but still, only a few characters got some more extra layers added to them, while the rest stayed as talking heads with trivial conversations. The story also developed, but many plot devices and nuances were underused, or not used at all. Most of all, the show failed to create any proper mood or atmosphere. Too many important events weren't shown but told instead by other characters' unpassionate newscaster's manner. I understand that low budget set some restrictions, but that's why the show feels safe (and here I don't mean lack of raunchy scenes considering the placing of the bulk of the story) and uncreative. I guess the creators of the show could have spent more energy on script and atmosphere than historical accuracy of some minor knick-knacks - beauty lies in the details, I know, but sometimes you have to hone those things that are not always visible at first sight.

Not the greatest historical shows in television history, and despite its many flaws, the show still manages to build some mild interest and sympathy. But if you are not very into the political situation of WWII, then it is very easy to move on as the show simply isn't that exciting. There are rumors about the second season, and how the last episode ended, one can expect the continuation of the story. The only hope is that the makers will be more bold with the second season (if they ever decide to make it).

We've been waiting for a good history series in Estonia for quite a long time. This one is different, not your typical heroism tale but from a view point of hookers, who are drawn into political games. It's been compared to Babylon Berlin and Dawnton Abbey, even as the budget is like thousand times smaller. It takes off slow but once it gets going, it's an exiting tale of spies and murder but first of all a story of a country drawn slowly into war and losing its independence. Very good actors.

This serial explains much about history. But you also need to know history. It's very anti communist, but you are wrong if you think it's anti Russian. There are several Russian characters in film, who suffer from communism and hate socialist regime. Stalin killed millions and millions Soviet citizens and you were still obliged to love him and the party. Then when the war begins, you're in between these tyrants, so you either have to love Hitler or love Stalin, even when you hate them both and want to be left in peace. I think more people in Russia should see this, because we were taught history differently in school and we think that small countries around us are very mean to us. We have countless films about nazi army occupying countries, but Soviet army did the same thing in Poland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and other places. History can be very painful to accept, but this serial is very humane and you can feel empathy for most characters, regardless of their nation.

The preparation for this TV-series was extensive and thorough but unfortunately the final result misses the mark.As it is with other estonian tv series , the characters are bland and quite boring. And for the potrayal of Mr. Falkenberg. lets just say there wont be any awards and reason to pop the champagne bottle because it was quite cringe worthy portrayal. I will give Litsid 5/10. You could watch it but if you dont then its just as fine.