Pustina (2016) User Reviews

decent mini series, watch it!

[surfisfun · 9/10 · 30 August 2017]

nice cinematography and locations.

Actor well cast.

On the slow side at times but keep your interest up.

If you liked the Missing and the killing, you will be interested.

English subtitles seems good.

Just Cracked this Gem Open...

[debrahnava-52496 · 9/10 · 22 March 2018]

And what a surprise! I think HBO is just wonderful for distributing these types of 'real' works. The story is mesmerizing and sad.. cinematically - perfection. With such a dynamic story - I'm quite sure to hold my interest. More to say as I watch more... I'm only just finished with the 1st episode but felt compelled to review regardless. Give this 1 a try-you certainly won't be disappointed in the top-notch acting and story-telling.

Slow-paced, but interesting!

[lonecreature · 9/10 · 8 November 2020]

The Revelation, quite the favorable part of the series!

Lucky Stumble

[me-67152 · 10/10 · 7 January 2017]

Stumbled on to this series browsing the contents of HBO Nordic, looking for a break from the ordinary, mostly American content. Decided to give this one a try, and very pleased that I did.

I don't speak a word of Czech, so I had to rely on the subtitles to get the dialogue. In spite of this, I was very impressed by the acting throughout. Almost a documentary feeling, very authentic and true. As good as the acting is, though, it's the cinematography that takes the prize. It's first rate and really tells the tale even on its own. The photography is mesmerizing at times.

The setting, in a run down rural eastern European village, is very vividly portrayed, with great affection and intimate detail. The decaying old cold war, Soviet era infrastructure and mind set of the people jumps out of the screen and really comes to life.

The determined attention to detail in the writing, directing, acting and photography all attest to the dedication of the people involved to really make this one count - and it does, among the best. Excellent!

Dark, but Amazing!

[cam-b-singh · 10/10 · 15 December 2017]

Wow! just finished this show, and it is great! It is extremely dark and dreary, but spellbinding from start to finish. Real emotions from real characters, which can be hard to find in most shows. Good acting, good plot, and it really takes you to the place where it is set. It's as least as good as most American HBO dramas. This is the first HBO Europe series that I've watched and I'm hoping they are all like this. I've never written a review before, but this moved me to the point that I had to tell somebody.

Highly recommend this series

[bitbybyteholdon · 10/10 · 25 December 2017]

At first I wasn't sure whether to continue watching; it took a couple of episodes to get into this one. The mood is somber; the Czech village is portrayed as lacking resources except for the possibility of local coal being mined by a new company trying to establish itself, with the inhabitants trying to make ends meet and favoring the new jobs and house sales resulting from offers by the coal company. Be forewarned that this won't be an uplifting series. If you like exposure to new cultures and lands, this will be of interest to you. The mystery is handled well and the acting, especially by the two main characters, is outstanding, I'm not familiar with the cast from other programming, but they all do a good job and the show is very well produced and directed. Background music is really appropriate and adds a nice element.

Astonishing discovery!!

[dalanuch · 10/10 · 29 September 2017]

This astonishing 8-episode Czech miniserie, is one of the few discoveries, along with the Italian "Gomorra" and some Nordic jewel, which can be comfortably situated at the top of a genre usually dominated by the Anglo-Saxons. The reason is that it accomplish the two basic premises: 1. Brilliant Execution 2. It avoids the "underlining" (interpretive, musical, script etc.), that is, not to treat the spectator like an idiot.

Some Beautiful Cinemaphotograghy, 2 episodes too long

[cshawsta84 · 6/10 · 19 June 2022]

Really interesting to see that part of the world, people customs, and institutions etc. Way too long. Too many long scenes of grieving or driving etc. Had to fast forward through scenes that added nothing to the story.

Well written story and acted though. Needed edit of at least 2 hours.

Burns so slow but so organic

[maestronicknrp · 10/10 · 16 November 2020]

First Think I noticed about this show right off the get is that the acting is great and not Hollywood. The suspense sort of just seeps in slowly as you feel you are living it with this small town.

Dark and Bleak

[robertwatson · 7/10 · 14 December 2020]

How it is/was in poorer Eastern Europe it was Bleak and Dark with a surprising ending

Compelling series.

[johnnynick · 10/10 · 18 November 2020]

Set in an ugly small town in Czech, near the Polish border, a local girl goes missing. The subsequent mystery of her whereabouts/fate introduce us to an array of locals who are being bought out by a mining company. There is some resistance to this but their quality of life is so dire that you can't really sympathize with those who are unwilling to let go of their roots. The authenticity of the cast and their habitat is such that I was almost convinced that this was a documentary. Everyone has a story. There are no cardboard cutouts here and as we discover, and they are all suspects. The paucity of their standard of living is a shock but this is not a depressing show. Compared elsewhere to The Missing and The Killing, it is compulsive viewing and the actor who plays the missing girl's father turns in a tour de force performance. Don't miss this!

A totally confusing story set in dark, bleak surroundings

[qui_j · 4/10 · 24 March 2021]

The bleakness and grinding poverty makes for a depressing environment that is made worse by a totally confusing plot. The series starts with an opening episode that does nothing to provide context and background for the story. One has no idea who the people are, the scenes are arranged chaotically, and there is zero continuity between them. It's as if the writers and producers have never heard of the use of a story board in TV production. It's the lack of continuity that killed it for me, not so much the fact that people seem to live in the dirt and grimy surroundings. There are multiple story lines but all appear disconnected until the very last episode. It's a very confusing way to tell a story!

Proof that a great miniseries can be made in CZ

[Gelaos · 8/10 · 14 October 2020]

Wasteland proves that even in Czech Republic (though under the HBO label) there can be made a miniseries of international quality. The rest of czech TV production doesn't hold a candle to it.

Visual style and atmosphere inspired by nordic crime shows, great acting, character development, dialogues, pacing, soundtrack, direction... Sure, it also has some drawbacks. For example some sub-plots were unnecessary, the detective storyline could be better and the miniseries sometimes feels a bit too self-aware of its own superiority.

However, nothing can change the fact that Wasteland is one of the best Czech works in a long, long time.

awesome, artistic

[bjhuberiv · 10/10 · 18 July 2021]

Filmed so well great story it makes you feel like you are there.

It is unnerving, intense and deep well worth the watch.

Bleak and Sordid

[crumpytv · 1/10 · 21 December 2020]

Gave up on it. Just didn't tick the box as entertainment on any level. Really quite depressing.

Sad people in a depressing place

[linda-export · 4/10 · 1 June 2019]

Hopefully, this will get a little more interesting. So far they all seem to be people wandering around depressed, angry, not in touch with each other. The dislike of animals bothers me.

boring nordic noir imitation stuck in the 70s

[nyobatusa · 1/10 · 4 June 2018]

If it wasnt for the cell phones in the series, the interiors and exteriors are stuck in the 70s communist ugly depressing regime. no changes since then. with the dead animal in the first episode and missing girl and miserable people all around with cold weather and with violent sex scenes it immediately proved to be a nordic noir imitation. the missing girl's mother did an ok job but the father was a bad choice. dusek is not a drama actor more of a comedy actor if actor at all. the raw unnecessary scenes with the prostutute were totally irrelevant to the story just to fit the genre. he himself admits to it in the interviews that he aint no actor. the whole background was a completely irrelevant to the story, just skip to the last eighth episode too many and youll see it was a story about kids being bad in a desperate environment with no proper guidance and hope for the future. czechs have so many better shows to offer, this one would be a failure. a similar show circus bukowsky is already ten times better story script then this one with many talented actor only one comedic actor bohumil klepl is again bad choice but still did much better job. there is so much that happens in the first episode you will be drawn into it especially when main character recounts his feelings to the viewer in first person making it autobiographical as well. also, as stories of many other characters in the circus setting makes it more interesting then a village called Pustina.