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*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
The plot of the movie covers a short term of the rule of the Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible during one of the most controversial periods of Medieval Russia – Oprichnina. Many Russian aristocrats with whole families were put in disgrace, exiled and executed. Sigismund, the King of Poland, invaded western borders of the country, Novgorod the Great has risen against the Tsar. Being terrified by Oprichnina, old and week Metropolitan Afanasiy resigned and left Moscow. The Tsar, feeling lonely, rushing about his obsession of the forthcoming end of the world and Judgment Day, being on the verge of insanity called for the Solovetsky Monastery abbot Phillip Kolychev, his childhood friend. Phillip has moved to Moscow and against his will was appointed on the metropolitan see. Being shocked by the bloodthirstiness of Tsar's party, Phillip bravely tells Ivan the Terrible the truth. Wrathful Tsar put the metropolitan into disgrace, exiled him and later killed secretly, as well as Phillip's nephew and his fellow warlords for the false accusation of yielding up Polotsk to Sigismund.In my opinion this movie is more likely a simple narration without any deep moral message in it, being less successful work of Pavel Lungin then previous "Ostrov". Lungin made a colourful historical novel, though leaving an incompleteness of the plot, without evolving the drama to the logical completion.
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