Skif

Liked this film watched on Amazon Prime Video , said it was in the time of Vikings but it had Scythians in it witch would place this at least 300 BC. This separated these peoples by about 1000 years ... well that's ok it is about a tribe trying to rid themselves of the nomadic bandit ways of the Scythians ...it is well acted directed and fight scenes are superb .

Would have given it an 8 but the subbed English made it lesser for me.

This movie is great for one reason, the action. Camera movement is really good, minimum amounts of quick cuts, and amazing action. The choreography is some of the best I've seen, with really smooth fighting without having to use doubles or cgi. The story is ok, doesnt really pull you in, but it works for what the movie is trying to focus on it.

The Scythian

The story is fit for epic proportions, for the bards to sing songs and elders to tell tales for generations to come. Though perhaps predictable at times, it's a classic, in the sense of such myths as Jason and the Argonauts or even Odysseus for example. It is perhaps shadowed a little by somewhat forced dialogue at times. I am not entirely convinced though as I'm not that adept at Russian and don't know how solid or accurate were the subtitles, so the fault may lie in that as well.

Acting seems to fit for the most part. Nothing that feels overly awkward. As they are the men of action, they let their fists and daggers and swords and bows and axes do the talking for the majority of the film. The lead seems out of place occasionally and I can't put my finger on it why exactly, but it's really not a that big of a concern because the decent pace will not allow to linger on any particular scene too long.

Visually it has good with the bad. Set design and costumes are on point for the most part and feel authentic, but some the locations seem off. Fighting scenes and camerawork are quite well done, though editing seems a bit flimsy at times and therefore some key moments might fall a bit short. Literally even. Unfortunately it also seemed to be yet another retelling of not just the times when the men were Men, but when ugly was Ugly and beautiful was Beautiful. Which is pretty much every film since the invention of camera. A minor issue of course and most likely goes with the mythic theme, but still.

Music fits well and helps to emphasize the scenes, sound mixing is enjoyable though, and it might be the language barrier again, I think I detected some syncing issues, but it might totally be my own imagination. Otherwise the scenes' and scenic atmosphere is well created.

The adventure is engaging and despite some missteps, you'll enjoy the ride. The action is satisfyingly brutal and better than in many Hollywood's high budget projects. Perhaps mostly because the executives aren't as greedy to force PG-13 ratings on just to cash in slightly more dough. Irrelevant, but I bet that The Dark Tower, for example, would've produced completely different results without these utterly stupid restrictions. But I digress.

It's not going to be the best film of the year, but you will enjoy it. Perhaps even enough to watch it again sometime, should you catch it from the telly. It is a solid effort. The pace will carry you through before you know it. Perhaps even leaving you longing for more.

Great locations, great landscapes. The story is captivating. absolutely not trivial. And the same goes with the characters, very interesting, all of them. I liked a lot also the fact that the setting is not the standard "knight" o "samurai" one, so many of the storylines were pretty new to me, and I would guess to most of the audience. The fight scenes are ok, so does the music. Do not expect too much from dialogue, at the end it's an action movie. I didn't like too much the leading actor, and some FXs (not sure it they can actually be called this way). These however were to me very small flaws. Overall it was a positive surprise, if you are looking for a cloak and dagger movie, and you are willing to explore not-mainstream channels, you won't be disappointed.

In the best moments of Skif, it reminds me of Vikings (with Ragnar!) - we get good and bloody action scenes, nice costumes and settings and here and there even some fine surreal moments (like in Mad Max - the woods tribe and the gladiator scene remind me a lot of the scene in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome). Without any modern Hollywood p.c.-regulations Skif is a really enjoyable and entertaining experience. Recommended if you like movies such as The 13th Warrior, the Conan and the Scorpion King movies etc. To sum it up: no masterpiece but good.