A Wild Ride: "Volchok" Delivers on Action and Heart

I had no idea about this movie until my husband brought it up, and I was literally blown away when I saw all the buzz about it yesterday morning. It seemed like overnight, billboards and ads started popping up everywhere. I decided to take a chance and check it out, curious to see what our local filmmakers had come up with.

About the movie:

Set in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the story follows 13-year-old Vanya Ogarov as he flees Moscow for Nizhny Novgorod to escape his would-be killers. To protect himself, Vanya hires a tough-as-nails fighter named Volchok.Volchok's job is to help Vanya make it to Nizhny in one piece, where a trusted friend of his father awaits. But their journey is fraught with danger.Characters:

Eugene Tkachuk - Volchok, a street-smart fighter who saves Vanya from his pursuers. He's a self-made man.

Yulia Khlynina - Elza, a seasoned tracker hired to catch the boy.

Mark-Malik Murashkin - Vanya Ogarov, a resourceful young aristocrat who's trying to escape his relatives who are after his inheritance. He's smart for his age and knows when to take risks.

Danil Vorobyev - Vesnitsky, Vanya's uncle who's got it in for the Ogarov family. He's got his eyes on the prize - the land with the oil reserves.

Visuals: It's clear that the filmmakers drew inspiration from Guy Ritchie's style, but our guy's got his own touch. The costumes, accessories, and sets are all top-notch, except for Elza's outfits... which are a bit too revealing for my taste. I loved the idea of setting the film in the backdrop of Rybinsk and Nizhny. If you think Rybinsk is just a set, do some research on the city - it's really like that, straight out of the early 20th century. Some of the locations looked like they were straight out of a graphic novel - if I'm wrong, let me know where that beautiful viaduct is. Acting: Tkatuk is a chameleon, a master of transformation. He's Lenin in Khroniki russkoi revolyutsii, a figure skating coach, and a rough-around-the-edges guy. And he pulls it off seamlessly. Usually in films like this, the kid steals the show, but in this case, it's all about Evgeny's charm. Danil Vorobyev is always playing some kind of German villain - it's like he's typecast. He's great at it, but it would be nice to see him play something else for a change. The chemistry between the kid and the fighter is adorable. The jokes are funny, and the whole film hangs on their chemistry. Minus points: I didn't like the kid - it's not even about the actor, it's the character in the script. He just didn't fit in with the atmosphere, and you couldn't help but feel like he was from a different time period. The dialogue between him and Volchok felt like they were speaking different languages. Although, he did a great job in Pervyi na Olimpe. The plot is super predictable. The only real suspense was whether Volchok would make it to the end of the film. The rest was pretty easy to follow. Volchok is basically a berserker. The cliched villains in this film are both a plus and a minus. I don't know how you could improve that aspect. As for Elza, I get what they were going for - a bit of a Sherlock Holmes vibe with a female Irene Adler. But they didn't quite pull it off. My Thoughts After Watching. I just finished watching this movie and I'm still reeling from the experience. I'm not one for long films, but this one had me hooked from start to finish. At over two hours, it's a commitment, but trust me, it's worth it. I took my kids to see it and they loved it - it's a great example of what our local filmmakers can do. Sure, there are some flaws, but overall, it's a solid film. I have to admit, I went in with some reservations, but I left feeling really good about the movie. If you can overlook some of the minor issues, it's a great watch.

What did you think? Did you enjoy it?

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