Mechenosets (2006) User Reviews

I enjoyed this film.

[DaveOctopus · 5/10 · 6 December 2006]

I watched it subtitled as it was in Russian, but really enjoyed it. The main character Sasha was born cursed, with a deadly weapon as an extension of his body. He lived his whole life unhappy because he was different and because anger caused him to do deadly things.

When Sasha finally found love in a young woman named Katya everyone tried to take her away from him ending in a deadly battle. There was a fair amount of gore, but not too much for the weak stomached.

Not for people who like the regular old Hollywood movie, but for those who enjoy independent films. Kinda got the feeling of an Asian fantasy film.

The Sword Bearer (2006)

[SnakesOnAnAfricanPlain · 5/10 · 13 December 2011]

The Sword Bearer started out as a real treat. It was shrouded in mystery, and unlike English language blockbusters, I hadn't overdosed in trailers, posters, and message boards. We see a motorcycle crash, and then a logging truck cut in half. As the mystery evolves, we find both gangsters and cops are after our protagonist. He's a normal guy, but when he gets angry he has the ability to grow a blade from his wrist. As the film progresses, it adds more tasty tidbits. He seems to kill anyone, even those pleased to see him. Later he picks up a girl and they go on the run together. The film looked gorgeous, in a bleak and realistic setting. The only real problem is the lack of explanation. I have no idea why any of these events took place. It seems so inconsequential to the writer to have some kind of narrative focus, that it's a film of set-up and no payoff. There's certainly a lot to be loving here, but being unable to invest in the character was a major flaw. It does show how one act of violence will escalate out of control, but should we allow people to just walk around the film world with knife hands and no explanation?

The Sword Bearer - Hate it or Love it...

[Don_Bruno · 28 February 2008]

It was a very interesting movie for me, and I am definitely one of those who likes it, but i can easily see why some people don't like it, there isn't a whole lot of dialog in the movie and the main character rarely speaks and when he does it's usually very short spoken, however the movie speaks volumes visually as with allot of the new Russian films coming out cinematography and how the shots were set up where quite impressive...

the storyline is not your typical one: Action / Romance / Sci-Fi / Thriller. and it very well can be all of that but essentially it is a story about a man who kills those who stand in his way, he is cursed with a kind of wolverine-esquire problem a retractable sword under his skin, I know it sounds silly but once you get with it becomes a irrelevant in the process of the story, it essentially is a story about the bloke who has the power and has used it to hurt allot of people, you understand why he doesn't say much and why he is much of a loner, and how hard it is for him to make intimate connections and he becomes a mysterious and an interesting person...

the movie was far from perfect, but at the same time by some odd reason kind of wicked and cool...

for those of you that like to experience different types of movies and don't mind them being different this one might be worth a check out...

Pretentious and empty

[aleph1 · 1/10 · 30 November 2006]

Nothing positive to say. Meandering nonsense, huffing and puffing with a "message". New Russian (post-Soviet) films can be very good (Cuckoo comes to mind), yet many have the bouquet of cardboard and the aftertaste of asbestos (Nochnoi Dozor would be a good example). This is a "dozor" type of emptiness. Acting would be horrible if not for the saving grace of utterly unappealing direction and incompetent editing that sometimes is so awful that it distracts from the impotence of the actors. Special award to the cameraman for making sure that every shot is shaky (would someone please realize that Blair Witch has had its 15 seconds of undeserved fame?) and takes are geared towards attention-deficit pre-teens who subside on CounterStrike and masturbation. The female lead poses and tries to look seductive too often, male antihero need a diction coach (although genetics aren't bad: rather expressive eyes.) One (middle) finger for this irrelevant pile of non-art. Anyone who reviews this positively better be a (distant) cousin of the "auteurs".

Brooding action film with a high quotient of brooding and a low amount of action (on screen)

[dbborroughs · 3/10 · 31 May 2008]

(SPOILERS AHEAD) Russian fantasy "actioner" (and I use the term loosely) that I've been trying to watch for over a year. I've finally gotten to the end and now I wish I didn't put in the repeated effort.

In an effort to save two hours of your life I'm going to tell you he plot- a guy who has the ability to project a long blade out of his arm returns home to see his mom. Things turn ugly after he is beaten up by the mafia boyfriend of an old girl friend. He takes revenge on the guy when he brings the girl home. The guys mafia mom sends her men out to get revenge while the cops begin looking for him as well.

Very little is said. no explanation is really given for anything (like why they lock id girlfriend in an asylum) and the action, for the most part is all off screen. The film essentially consists of a guy who looks like Adrian Brody looking intense and not saying anything, killing people (off screen-most of the action happens off screen). It looks good, is well acted and had there been some form of reason for what is going on it might have been a good film. Hell, I would have liked some sense of real character development or back story (all we know is that the guy was picked on as a kid). The movie runs the better part of two hours and it feels like its six. If they weren't going to tell us anything they could have at least picked up the pace so it seemed like it was moving too fast. No instead we get the hero on a boat. The hero in a bus, the hero walking, the hero looking disturbed.Hero with his girl. It really annoyed me since I think this could have been a good film if they had simply done something or had someone actually say something meaningful other than give instructions to "get this guy".

4 out of 10. Its about four hours (all my attempts to see this) I'll never get back. Only for those who want to see a brooding Russian action film with very little action

A Fun Wolverine-Like Premise That Starts To Get Tiresome Near The End

[dilbertsuperman · 7/10 · 21 February 2009]

This movie has great style, fantastic visuals and hot sex scenes with a beautiful woman. It falters at the end as the story twists get a little bit extreme.. but all in all, I would recommend this movie just because it has that good old Russian feel to it.. big, impressive, powerful, bleak and brutal and at the same time beautiful in the old tradition of tragic beauty.

PLOT: A guy who can make a blade shoot out of his hand at will (not a spoiler since they show it in the trailer) when he is REALLY mad at you tries to have a girlfriend.. he discovers that after you kill one person with your sword hand, it's kind of hard to keep a stable relationship....

Sword boy is on the planet for a reason.. he just doesn't know what it is.. YET.

Lots of dark street fights with guys unexpectedly getting filleted creatively.

RUSSAIN w ENG subtitles.. slick worth a watch..

super"hero" movie for adults

[indofinmusic · 8/10 · 4 March 2008]

What happens when the average joe finds out he has supernatural powers? The premise may sound familiar. The Watchmen? Unbreakable? However, the Russian sci-fi action flick, The Sword Bearer, is far from the standard stock.

The story revolves around a man named Sasha who as a boy was shunned from society, his peers and family due to a supernatural power that he possess. When he wishes or his anger allows, a sword extends from his arm piercing his own skin. Very wolverinish? Maybe... but that's not the interesting part of this film. Shunned all his life and driven by anger (and a temper he does have) our "hero" returns to his home town to turn his life around or find a reason to. The only thing he encounters here is trouble when an encounter with an old flame's new boyfriend leaves him bloodied on the ground. This is where the vengeance and anger comes into play. This is a man you do not want to cross and from this point the mafia and the police are on his tail. He meets a girl and falls in love instantly as does she and this is really what the movie is about.

The film is highly impressionistic with bold colors and noir overtones spliced with short yet extreme action sequences. This is art house at it's core, beautifully filmed with such attention to details in every scene over gruesome sci-fi action. It's this odd mash that interests me so much in this film. The directors approach for this genre is refreshing focusing on the emotional journey of Sasha and not a straight action film. Don't worry though, the action is there and plenty of it. However, much of these sequences show only implied violence with pictures of the horrific aftermath. This is not to say that action is not shown. These scenes are here and are fantastic (especially the ending where we see Sasha's full powers unleashed in desperation). The director chooses to imply the violence of many scenes to keep the focus on the character's emotional struggle at hand. This is a tragic love story and a refreshing entry into the genre.

"Mechenosets" is the film about real human feelings

[cowsforever · 10/10 · 26 October 2006]

"Mechenosets" is one of the most beautiful romantic movies I've ever seen. The name of the film can be translated in English as "the sword-bearer". The main hero (Sasha) was born with one exceptional ability: he can protect himself with the extremely sharp sword which emerges from under the skin in his hand. At first side he can seem one more foolish superhero from the senseless movie about unreal events and feelings. But it is not about Mechenosets. He hardly can be even called the anti-hero. I think he is just a person who lost the purport in his life and faith in good, justice and love. In his life he has never met someone who could understand and love him (except his mother). Every his step is stained with blood; he takes revenge on everybody for his gift which became a damnation for him. And suddenly he meets her. She doesn't need the idle talks and explanations. She loves him for what he is. She doesn't care what he did. The fact that he's next to her is more important than anything else. But soon she finds out his secret: he kills two people (her ex-boyfriend and his bodyguard) to protect her before her very eyes. Even after that she couldn't escape her feelings. They try to run but it's hart to hide. Finally they have a serious car accident. He is caged; she is in a mental hospital. They don't know anything about each other, but she believes that he'll save her. He surmounts a lot of obstacles but finally finds her. They run again but they aren't invulnerable. She is wounded, she needs a rest, but police almost catch them. He doesn't know what to do, they drive into a corner, and then his sword begins to cut down trees, helicopter around them, but there is no need for it, because she is already dead in his arms, and he is the lonely person in the whole world again.

A Bout de Soufflé starring Wolverine

[berty2001 · 8/10 · 6 February 2007]

Despite the title, The Sword Bearer, and the DVD cover (action/herioc poses of The Sword Bearer) this is not a super hero film.

(Minor Spoilers) It follows the tale of Sasha, The Sword Bearer, who is cursed with having a retractable sword in his forearm. Cool you say, but no, this is real life. If you had this power as a child could you control it when, say, faced by a mad man, or when your mum's boyfriend is beating her. And if you don't control it, how do you cope with being a two time killer at the age of 12.

This essentially is where Sasha is when we meet him. Wandering aimlessly after another killing (much like A Bout de Soufflé). He then meet Katya, and the pair fall instantly in love, providing Sasha with a real reason to live and try and changes his ways. However, his past is still chasing him, in the form of two police officers.

That is essentially the story, and there is virtually no action on screen, though a lot if suggested.

I really like this movie. Unlike many Hollywood 'super hero' films, we get very little back story, there is no bad guy (unless you count The Sword Bearer himself) abut there is a lot of heart and good character development.

Worth checking out if you can find it.

WOW, I was quite impressed

[HelloGordon · 9/10 · 29 April 2007]

There is a lot of crap coming out of Hollywood lately.

A friend, sends me movies now and again, as a surprise, it's awesome.

I turned it on and couldn't stop watching, it is a drama, but with a odd twist. Imagine if Romeo, as in Shakepeare, had a super power. It is sad and poetic at the same time. Hollywood should take notice of the new Russian cinema, they are telling stories that are not about big explosions and cgi. It takes a simple basic premise and tells a story, without a spectacle. This is a lot like an Asian film with a dark Russian twist. Granted it's not perfect, but nothing ever is. You know what the power is but it is never explained, nor totally realized until the end. It becomes secondary to the emotion of the story. I don't want to see a remake, it is too cool as is, the Hollywood system would, as usual, mess it up. Acting is top notch all around. Directing and Camera work are far above most of the crap that is out there. Kudos to all involved,and I will turn a lot of people on to this independent epic. A+++++

If you can find i, watch it.

Not what I expected, but a very good surprise indeed

[ikke_tralala · 10/10 · 18 April 2007]

I went into this movie after having read it was a drama about a man with a supernatural gift, who was made into a monster by society. Suffice to say I was expecting something entirely different from what I got. But it was a happy surprise. My friend and I both thought the movie was very romantic (the fact that the male lead isn't bad to look at surely helped), and there was enough plot development, action and even humor (the fact that it takes them until the 3rd part of the movie to now each other's name had the whole movietheatre laughing) to keep you entertained and invested in the story. So in short: Not what I expected, but a very good surprise indeed. I'll definitely buy this movie when it comes out on DVD.

Sasha is a man who is not suppose to exist

[mikomijade · 10/10 · 10 July 2007]

A woman borough a boy to this world and was alone. They both were alone because a boy had a gift and a curse in one package - he was capable of withdrawing sword from his arm. There was always a wound on his wrist in the cause of this "gift" - the wound of the deadliest weapon inside of his body. First he kills his constantly drunk stepfather who hurts his mom every time. Then he grows up and decides to find his real father. Just as simple as all the time for a superhero - he reaches the justice....but the society decides this justice is not necessary and dangerous which is indeed right 'cause it is not like in Hollywood movies that the character does not try to kill anyone - Sasha (he is the main hero acted by Artem Tkachenko) kills if the person who in his opinion deserves to die but gets blames from authorities and runs. In such a runaway from authorities and Mafia he meets a girl (acted by Chulpan Hamatova) and falls in love with her. Everything else is to be watched...not told. Be aware that this film is more about feelings and emotions but not about actions. This film is full of pain of the main character full of him and his vision of life.

I you wanna watch this movie you gonna need a hell lot of patience

[Bijal666 · 8/10 · 27 August 2008]

For everyone who expects a traditional superhero-movie it might be an unpleasant surprise. It is definitely more of a drama rather than an action movie. It focuses mainly on emotions and it's a bit like a Greek tragedy - whatever the main character does it always goes wrong somehow.

That's because Sasha, like each superhero, takes the law into his own hands and the society doesn't appreciate it. Sasha becomes an outlaw. While on the run, he meets a beautiful girl and falls in love so things get even more complicated for him.

As you can see, the plot itself is really dramatic but the movie lacks in dynamics. It reminds me slightly of the narration in the recent movies by Ram Gopal Varma. Everything happens very slowly. However, when there's an action scene it gets so immensely dynamic that before you realize what's going on, it's all over. But the director does not want to impress us with flashy and showy action. What is more important here is the outcome of Sasha's actions, which are mostly very drastic. The score is very scarce, which also makes it more difficult to concentrate on the film. So basically you need to be very patient in order to watch it.

Is the film worth it? That is a question really difficult to answer. I don't think that this experience enriched me so very much, but somehow I keep on thinking about this movie and feel like watching it again. Mostly due to the atmosphere, which is really dense, but not suffocating because all the time Sasha and Katya have hope. After all they're young people, who have all their lives to live. So no matter how hard it gets there's always a slight joyous tune when they are together.