The Ottoman Lieutenant

While some reviewers cannot see beyond the work of the actors and director in a project, others pay to escape life and be immersed in a world we cannot otherwise visit. The Ottoman Lieutenant is a grand, sweeping movie that has war as its backdrop. This movie is not a documentary. The artists who worked to bring us this bit of fiction immersed themselves beautifully within the project, and their hard work stands out, much like the Merchant Ivory films. The movie itself does not ask for a review of its accuracy, it simply asks that we put aside the trappings of our present environment to imagine a different vista. If you are interested in enjoying beauty for its own sake, then you will enjoy this film. If you are still intent on reliving the atrocities of the past, then l suggest you stick to documentaries, and only those with which you wholeheartedly agree. - Chipper F. Xavier, Esq.

The way I see it this is the answer to the Armenian funded "The Promise". Both films have good and bad parts, it's obvious both do have a hidden political message. Both tried to fill the cast with some resounding names. Frankly it seems to me that this movie does not have the intensity generated by its nemesis The Promise. Cinematography is very good but it missing depth, long shots riding over the wheat fields too much repeated, some content empty scenes....well to me it's 5 stars!

I really wanted to love this movie completely. For me, half the actors were phenomenal and half were not. Michiel Huisman was absolutely phenomenal in the role of The Ottoman Lieutenant. His passion shown through in the entire performance. I did not care for the lead actress Hera Hilmar in this role. She came across as dull, uninspired, unbelievable and with flat affect & tone to her voice and performance, in my opinion. I do not know her other work, but I was uninspired by her performance here. This should have been an extremely romantic and epic movie but Michiel should not have to carry it himself. In addition, I did like Ben Kingsley's role, but did not care for Josh Hartnett. If the lead actors had been evenly matched and evenly phenomenal then I would have rated this movie better.

The core of this movie is a love story--and a very romantic, engaging one at that. Breathtaking cinematography and gripping storytelling make this an exceptionally watchable piece of filmmaking. The politics of World War I, the horrors of the Turkish collaboration with the Nazis and their genocidal treatment of the Armenians are merely used as a backdrop to show the effects of war on everyday human beings. Along with other reviewers, I found that Hera Hilmar's performance as an American missionary nurse in Turkey quirky and often unconvincing--even just the fact of her hair always hanging in her face as she ministers to wounded men being carried her way on stretchers. She does improve as the film goes on and pretty much redeems herself in a key scene near the end. This is a movie, not a history lesson, and as such it offers viewers much to savor and contemplate.

This is a great story, however the acting isn't. The female lead is not believable & it could have been a much better performance or casting choice.