Evilenko

Evilenko is made extremely well, I've seen it twice now on DVD and Malcolm McDowell's towering characterization of the real Russian serial killer should be recognized as an artistic achievement. No, it's not Citizen X and that's a good thing. Where Citizen X reads like a plodding police investigation, Evilenko comes across as a searing reading of a killer's personal hell. David Greico has written and directed a completely interesting and thorough examination of Evilenko's mind and motivations. While the killings are handled dispassionately, the victims aren't one dimensional, we feel for them but Grecio never sentimentalizes them. Definitely a cut above the average serial killer film.

Evilenko is another film based on the character of Chikatilo. Along with the story the main theme is the role of the Soviet system and communist propaganda for the emergence and invulnerability of this mass murderer. Unfortunately, Evilenko fails to create a realistic picture of the criminal who took dozens of lives, nor to convey the spirit and meaning of the communist society that created him. The ugly Soviet reality in the film is exaggerated - neither the people were so fanatical, nor the government so omnipotent. If the goal is to create an absurd reality, like 1984 and Brazil - here it is unnecessary, the purpose of the film in my opinion is different. Police station and interrogations in an abandoned tunnel? Come on, don't take us for idiots. The killer, an analogue of Chikatilo in the film, also seems too unreal. Malcolm McDowell is a great actor, but unfortunately he also contributed to the image of Evilenko as a caricature of a villain. A criminal who hypnotizes his victims and makes witnesses forget him is a typical character in cheap novels, not suitable here. As a result, the film is perceived as a fairy tale and fails to create an image of reality. Everything that this film can't do, fortunately, has been achieved by another one - Citizen X - a great picture of the epoch and the deadliest murderer in history.

I vote often but rarely feel the need to go beyond that point. With that said I will keep it simple. The acting is believable, the soundtrack, compelling, haunting and delicious. The story, although altered and a piece of fiction based on fact, interesting. Performances all around are believable, Malcolm hits a definite peak with his portrayal, a career milestone. Don't expect disturbing scenes of horror, expect disturbing scenes of subtle perversion. We don't enter the mind of the serial killer, he has to let us out first. Inside the mind of Evilenko, you will see the blue sky. (comrade) Perhaps today is not the day, but I see this becoming a cult classic in the years to come. Recommended.

Also recommended is the Italy only soundtrack with vocal samples from the movie.

In 1995, HBO produced a film called Citizen X which detailed the murder rampage of Andrei Chikatilo, who killed over 50 women and children.

Evilenko is a fictional representation of this serial murder spree which occurred in the Soviet Union during the fall of same in the late 1980's.

In every way, this version is weaker than Citizen X. The acting is inferior. Donald Sutherland, Max Von Sydow and Stephen Rea are exceptional whereas Malcolm McDowell is his usual overacting self and is not credible as the murderer.

The greatest weakness is an almost laughable explanation of how Evilenko seduced his victims. David Grieco, the writer and director, wants us to believe that Evilenko hypnotized his victims by staring at them.

Don't rent this. Instead, see Citizen X; a vastly superior movie in which the killer, using the actual name of the killer, Chikatilo, is played by the fabulous Jeffrey DeMunn with spine chilling conviction.

Evilenko is one of those rare moments in the history of cinema, where a (nearly) perfect mix of elegance and perversion succeeds in producing an alarming portrait of the world in which we live. Acting, screenplay, direction, music and scenes, all contribute to create a realistic, dark atmosphere of decadence and inner horror. The story tells this is somewhere in Russia during the Gorbacev era. But we can locate it everywhere - everywhere there is a school, and there is a hierarchy ready to cover even the worse crimes. Malcom McDowell creates one of the most credible, disgusting and disturbing monsters ever seen on screen. Not fascinating as Hannibal Lecter, his clear character alteration is not enough to be aware of his pernicious attitude. This is the first movie of Grieco: not bad as a debut! The movie has not been really distributed in Italy, and I see the average score in IMDb is very low. I understand this is not the usual investigation movie, so it's hard to be accepted. However, I found it to be an important movie, if not really a milestone.