The Conquest of Siberia

Not least for the glimpse it might give into some of Putin's thinking.

I have no idea about the historical accuracy, but the geopolitics is very interesting, showing the juxtaposition of the same sort of eastern mounted warriors who in more ancient times had often swept into Europe, but were now caught between the Chinese and Russian empires.

The predominant theme is one of peoples just wanting to live in peace - one that is extremely relevant today - and just how difficult that can be, with troublemakers at both extremes of the social hierarchy always ready to start a fight.

Despite appearances, the plot line is quite complex - even at the romantic level - and the action scenes are well staged.

It's nice to watch films from sources other than the Hollywood production line, especially when they give you a glimpse into other cultures and ways of life.

One of the most awful films I have seen in the last years. All actors' play is unsatisfactory, almost nothing left from the original book which is interesting and very good, so no surprise the author asked to take off his name from the film titles.

Some Russian films are sort of immature. They are clumsy and infantile. This was not. It was great visually, with a sense of humor. But the storyline wasn't really clear. Seen on Tubi, the free streaming site, which shows some foreign films; along with older Hollywood films, many low-budget indies, and even some live TV.

Probably 1 star too many, but I have seen recently so many bad films that this one seems quite good. Consider the fact that I am a Pole, so I dislike Russian culture, but the film seems really interesting. Set in the times of Peter the Great, the builder and conquerer. A story is simple, war and love, but played well, heroes believable, actors are professionals, a few beautiful and handsome faces, the set is drawn in simple strokes, you can follow enjoying the view, harsh climate and characters. Costumes are beautiful, the screenplay acceptable, directing flawless, cinematographer knows his job. A solid film deserving a better recognition. Not too much money spent and thank God, instead of following blown cars or cities we can follow a good storyline.

Do you like period pieces? Especially those with big battle and fight scenes? Well this could be something for you. Don't ask me about historical accuracies or anything like that though. I just enjoyed the movie for its entertainment purposes and it had quite a few of them.

When the fight and battle scenes play out right, what more do you need? Are there better movies with similar themes? Surely - as there are worse movies of course. Overall a very decent effort ...