Ekipazh (2016) Reviews

• An impressive thriller

  rmanory2016-10-15

  This movie was a surprise for me. I knew that Russian cinema is good, but I have never seen a Russian movie with complicated special effects, and I was very pleasantly surprised. Without going into the details of the plot, this is a movie that has a mix of issues that are usually dealt with separately, and here they are interconnected. A love relationship, two separate son-father relationships (between Alex, the main character and his father, as well as between Alex's boss and his son), adventure and even satire on the way workplace relationships are handled in Russia, as well as a basic human desire to help fellow humans and be brave, all are smartly combined to produce a very satisfying movie that keeps you in continuous suspense. The special effects are impressive and would not shame a Hollywood movie. Highly recommended.

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• Impressive

  olgalatayeva2016-05-03

  This movie is worth watching. You will forget about popcorn. I didn't notice how 2 hours had passed. It impressed me more than Revenant. It made me cry a few times. It is very deep and dramatic. Kozlovsky is not just very handsome, but also a talented actor! You totally believe everything he does. The movie combines both Russian drama traditions and modern action. The plot concerns not just a catastrophe, but also important issues like family values, human dignity and courage. Bright, colorful, emotional, interesting to watch. Inspired by the 1979 Soviet film Air Crew, it was the second catastrophe film shot in the Russian Federation. The film was shot in digital 3D IMAX camera and become the second Russian film shot using this equipment after Stalingrad (2013) by Fedor Bondarchuk. The filming took place in Moscow, Moscow region and in the Crimean peninsula. In the peninsula they filmed on as the earthquake-prone island volcano in the Indian Ocean. The crew has shot the flight scenes in two planes: The Tupolev Tu-204SM (RA-64151 board) and decommissioned Tupolev Tu-154 of Kosmos Airlines (RA-85796 board).

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• There comes a time for everyone to prove their worth.

  Reno-Rangan2016-12-14

  The Russian disaster film, partially inspired by the 1980 film of the same name. One of the film to do good business outside the domestic market, particularly in Japan and China. So there are lots of great stuff about it, from filmmaking to the box office and I enjoyed watching it, but did not like it as overwhelmingly. That does not mean it is overrated, but I liked it less, that's all. It is set to tell the story of life of pilots, their personal life, such as trouble with romance, family issues and tackling obstacles in their professional line, especially when they were needed the most. So in the first half it was all about drama, an introduction to what comes in the latter half. A pilot father struggling with his troublesome teen son. And another pilot who got fired from the Russian air force, now in a private airline where he meets a woman, but having a difficulty to stabilise the relationship. When the second half begins, the narration completely flips. Like it is a different film, particularly brings attention to the action- adventure fans. Fate brings them all together in a plane and they decide to evacuate people who are stranded in an airport near the Alaskan region island when it was hit by volcanoes and a series of earth quicks. The remaining is to reveal the heroic acts by the pilots and Co. "He's a pilot gifted by God. My hands are only hands, his hands are wings. I have never seen anyone like this before." Visually, it was good. All those crucial parts of the graphics were rendered neatly. Even the stunt sequences were composed so well. But some of them were unrealistic. That's very common, even for a Hollywood film, so I think it's not a big deal. My issue was the film length. It was over two hours long and I did not like much of the first part. The next half was quite good, because of its thriller. When I thought it's over, the narration surprised with another adventure followed by in the final segment. Like usual this Russian film too has been built on the corruption plot. Not the whole film, but in the initial stage. The influenced people who target the honest employees for going against them. Really a good theme, but when the disaster part takes over, everything will be forgotten. Then it gets edgy, so that's where you will forget the time and sit straight to enjoy it. If you had seen plenty of similar heroic films, then it will be another okayish type. If not, you will have a good time with it. It took an hour to get into action-adventure, but in those times, it failed to build the romance part to its best. I'm disappointed with that since it had fine actors and situation to build on. The Father- son duo looked much better. In the second half, nothing of these sentimentally appealed as it should have been, not for me. Because it became more a heroic type with sacrifice than family and relationship influence. So overall it's a good attempt, a nice film for the weekend watch. 7/10

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• excellent movie

  pandzicelvedin2016-10-11

  I'm impressed acting actors and action films, not you bored for a single moment in the movie, in a few moments in the film. I really felt as if I were in that situation ... also i agreed with comment of Olga Latayeva Although usually watch Hollywood movies, this Russian movie surprised me, good acting and quality effects in film and action congratulations ... my recommendation to view this movie ..... Very reserved acting talent captain and auxiliary pilots. These roles are done very professionally and at a high level.

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• Incredible action adventure.

  paulclaassen2018-06-10

  Wow, what an incredible action adventure disaster film! The film has three very definite acts: the first is the introduction of the characters, and is interesting in its own right as we get to know the very likable characters. The second act is just complete mayhem. My goodness, it was awesome, as the film took us on a very unexpected turn. There are earthquakes, a volcanic eruption, incredible destruction scenes, runways collapsing, people running for their lives! The third is essentially a rescue operation, as the crew and passengers must overcome obstacle upon obstacle in mid-air between two aircraft. Wow, wow, wow, if you're a disaster movie fan and not entertained by this, I honestly don't know what would!

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