Legend of Flying Cyprian is one of the very few Slovak movies created in recent history. The setting of the movie immediately puts it in one category with somewhat similar piece by Juraj Jakubisko - Bathory. But don't get fooled on the first sight, Legend of Flying Cyprian is much more than a mere copy or, if you prefer so, a mere parasite in the new wave of historical movies in Slovakia. The main difference lies in the storytelling, pacing and the setting itself. Bathory was filled with big great acts, action, explicit violence, struggle of good and evil, but at the end remained nothing more than just a torso of rather creepy fairy tale. Flying Cyprian, when compared, focuses on a single man who was found by the monks when he arrived half dead at the gates of a monastery deep in the woods. The movie tells his story, which is based on a legend almost unknown even in Slovakia. The magic of this movie is based in very precise storytelling which tends to be rather simple, yet effective, with slow pacing. Two separate life stories of a single man resonate in contrast with each other as they are told via numerous flashbacks. Since most of the scenes are shot between the walls of the monastery, the spaces are filled with various religious symbols. Not a single one of them is misplaced or put somewhere violently - they all have their own place and meaning in the story of Cyprian. Even though I was a bit surprised at first when the ending came, I later realized it was only appropriate. The ending illustrated the ultimate change from sin to atonement which, as I have realized only later on, was the main theme of this full-length debut of Mariana Cengel- Solcanska. Legend of Flying Cyprian is a surprisingly good independent movie which proves that where is will there is also a way. Despite of it's low budget, it feels authentic and believable.
