skarpethinn
Lifetime Total
1+
IMDb Member
11 years
Reviews
Vlad Tepes (1979)
Great Film, When Taken In Context
It's interesting how many of the reviews of this movie try to be history lessons, coming across more as excuses for the reviewer to brag about his knowledge of Vlad Tsepes, than an actual review of the movie! So i'll skip the history lesson; a couple of these reviewers have done a sufficient enough job on that.
Stefan Sileanu is extremely engaging in his portrayal of the Voivod; regal, menacing and imperious all at once. Keeping in mind that this movie was for all intents and purposes sponsored by Ceaucescu at the height of his grip over the country, it is a fairly balanced piece, keeping in line with what we already know of that period of history (skewed as those reports may be), and Sileanu's performance consolidates what we know of Vlad without coming across as cheesy or hammy (a thin line, when dealing with characters like Vlad Dracula).
My only complaint is that the movie cuts off right at the exact moment Vlad's biography becomes a) most intriguing, & b) least known - his captivity under Matthias Corvinus. While this movie was trying to be as historical as possible, i would have liked to have seen some attempt to catalog these rather obscure 12 years - time during which he is supposed to have a) become involved with a female in Corvinus' family (seemingly a cousin, but possibly a sister) & b) convinced the powers-that-be in the rather powerful Hungarian court to release him back to his position as Voivod.
This is only a small complaint, but one that has stayed with me ever since i first saw this movie about 12 years ago. i have recently obtained a DVD copy off eBay, and i have to say that i am equally impressed with it now as i was back then.
Stefan Sileanu is extremely engaging in his portrayal of the Voivod; regal, menacing and imperious all at once. Keeping in mind that this movie was for all intents and purposes sponsored by Ceaucescu at the height of his grip over the country, it is a fairly balanced piece, keeping in line with what we already know of that period of history (skewed as those reports may be), and Sileanu's performance consolidates what we know of Vlad without coming across as cheesy or hammy (a thin line, when dealing with characters like Vlad Dracula).
My only complaint is that the movie cuts off right at the exact moment Vlad's biography becomes a) most intriguing, & b) least known - his captivity under Matthias Corvinus. While this movie was trying to be as historical as possible, i would have liked to have seen some attempt to catalog these rather obscure 12 years - time during which he is supposed to have a) become involved with a female in Corvinus' family (seemingly a cousin, but possibly a sister) & b) convinced the powers-that-be in the rather powerful Hungarian court to release him back to his position as Voivod.
This is only a small complaint, but one that has stayed with me ever since i first saw this movie about 12 years ago. i have recently obtained a DVD copy off eBay, and i have to say that i am equally impressed with it now as i was back then.