A beautiful film from the visual side, completely empty inside: the actors are like small children who play for the first time at a school play(doing a lot of bad grimaces and uses hard overplay). The plot, which seems to be an interesting idea, does not reveal it at all. Completely at all, because the whole game is not a discussion and a search for the mafia, but "I think the mafia is you. And I think the mafia is you. Ok"... The characters are corny measuring among themselves with their pretentious conceit and sharp jokes. And too much pathos from nowhere(It is workable only if other components of film made qualitatively).
The rating on the site is absolutely justified. Unfortunately.
13 Reviews
Mafia Game
nogodnomasters5 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
This is a poorly constructed Russian film. 11 contestants volunteer to play the game. Two are randomly selected as "Mafia" and the other nine are "Innocent Civilian." They must guess who the mafia are by voting people off the show to face their death caused by their worst fear. It is not as they have to survive on an island or fight against each other. They sit in coffin style chairs and talk about who they think is mafia. We see a back story for the eleven contestants and the deaths of those that die. It was boringly constructed.
Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity. PLOT SPOILER: The pretty blonde dies first. Seriously?
Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity. PLOT SPOILER: The pretty blonde dies first. Seriously?
Better than boredom
blumdeluxe28 April 2019
Warning: Spoilers
"Mafiya: Igra na vyzhivanie" tells the story of a futuristic game show in which contestants play some sort of werewolf game and are killed according to their worst fear if they become elected by the group.
This is of course not a great movie. It is a kind of mixture between horror and futurism and tries to shock the audience through drastic images and brutalism. However I have to say that some of the game, where the contestants investigate their hidden connections, is quite appealing indeed, even if you have to throw all realism over board in order to enjoy it. I guess with a bit more patience and stringence, thiss could have easily been a solid movie. As it is it is more a source of distraction.
All in all people who generally enjoy the genre will have their fun with this one, otherwise you shouldn't expect much more than entertainment for an evening.
This is of course not a great movie. It is a kind of mixture between horror and futurism and tries to shock the audience through drastic images and brutalism. However I have to say that some of the game, where the contestants investigate their hidden connections, is quite appealing indeed, even if you have to throw all realism over board in order to enjoy it. I guess with a bit more patience and stringence, thiss could have easily been a solid movie. As it is it is more a source of distraction.
All in all people who generally enjoy the genre will have their fun with this one, otherwise you shouldn't expect much more than entertainment for an evening.
Promising premise
Finfy1 June 2016
Warning: Spoilers
The premise is promising but was not well translated to the screen.
We do not get to know the people before the "game." We do not care about who wins, and we can easily predict who will die next and the "twist" towards the end. It is hard as a viewer to comprehend what is really going on because the movie does not even try to establish a universe around its protagonists.
The visuals are not great either; of course, this is not a blockbuster or a million-dollar production, but the composing was not done well in post production.
The soundtrack is also subpar, with no emotion or suspense, just beeping in the background.
The actors are good. There are a couple of expressive faces, but the movie kills every character too fast to even really let them try to build them up. Try to avoid this movie.
We do not get to know the people before the "game." We do not care about who wins, and we can easily predict who will die next and the "twist" towards the end. It is hard as a viewer to comprehend what is really going on because the movie does not even try to establish a universe around its protagonists.
The visuals are not great either; of course, this is not a blockbuster or a million-dollar production, but the composing was not done well in post production.
The soundtrack is also subpar, with no emotion or suspense, just beeping in the background.
The actors are good. There are a couple of expressive faces, but the movie kills every character too fast to even really let them try to build them up. Try to avoid this movie.
Boring and predictable
spyschny19 May 2016
Warning: Spoilers
This movie is a waste of your time. It's about a dystopic future where no one is any longer interested in TV-shows or movies. It is just not thrilling enough anymore for the most of the people, so a new show "Mafia" was invented. 10 normal people and 2 Prisoners play this game by their free will. Clue is that the winner will gain 1 Billion Dollars and the losers will get nothing or even die, while they are playing the game. The players just vote from round to round to decide who is one of the two Mafia-members and has to confront his greatest fear and possibly die if they can't get over it. So a very flat story ... . A film like this lives (in my opinion) of good actors and of very good written stories of the lives/background of the players. But you will get none of this. They try to Tell you a short story about everyone to explain their motivations to join "Mafia", but everything is treated/discussed way to short and you wont get a feeling for them. Also you don't believe the reactions and feelings of the players they show each other. Not like in carnage for example.
I'm Surprised at the Bad Reviews
writingunicorn20 January 2020
With most horror stories being cookie cutter versions of each other, I found this a refreshing change. The countdown to "who dies next" and "how they die" kept me interested until the end. Great special effects and a different approach to "countdown" movies, I think you should give this one a chance!
Nugget
astro-5690921 August 2019
The film is one of the best. Watched in 3D. Awesome graphics. Loved my children. People in the game die from their fears and only thanks to an unforeseen situation, namely love, the person who was supposed to die is saved, because his fears are not so terrible for another person. Grade 8. But given the undeserved previous comments and grades 10.
Not bad at all . Ignore these 2 saur pickles'review here.
PeterAndTheWolves10 March 2018
I bought the BluRay real cheap and did not know what to expect.
I am a very critic when it comes to movies but as soon watchers start to complain about a movie being predictable I can assure you , these people can't even point out why a movie is NOT predictable ....They are so easily debunked .
And the vast majority of movies are predictable and thus actually boring!
Depends on old you are and how many movies one had seen also .
The graphics in this movie are great actually, I've seen hollywood 'blockbusters' with lesser graphics and no one was complaining about this in these movies
I suspect prejudice , that is all.
How the story begins indeed is strange, you get launched directly into 'the game', with a thin explanation during the movie , all the info is there , but you need to watch the movie instead of just 'looking ' at it. Was this done a bit different I would give this movie even a 7 out of 10 , satisfying movies for me always get a 6 and I seldom judge a movie into the 8 category.
The graphics in this movie are great actually, I've seen hollywood 'blockbusters' with lesser graphics and no one was complaining about this in these movies
I suspect prejudice , that is all.
How the story begins indeed is strange, you get launched directly into 'the game', with a thin explanation during the movie , all the info is there , but you need to watch the movie instead of just 'looking ' at it. Was this done a bit different I would give this movie even a 7 out of 10 , satisfying movies for me always get a 6 and I seldom judge a movie into the 8 category.
Town of Salem The Movie and So Generic Story
furkan12954 January 2019
I watch on TV and this kind of good. CGI same time laughable and same time good especially game room. But i love laughable CGI it is so funy. Actors is good i dont know i watch turkish dubbing and it is kind of good. But characters so weak every character only generic who not have a deep. Script good but plot and ending is weak. Someone starting to write some man die and before want to be combine he is good starting but befor who is boring and stop writing kind of student writer. Another thing i love Town of Salem and movie caught the air.
Finaly it is not good movie but do you see in tv chanel not change.
Play to win or die
Woodyanders6 April 2022
Warning: Spoilers
2071, Moscow, Russia. Twelve contestants from different walks of life participate in a high stakes televised game of Mafia in which they have to conquer their worst fears or die trying.
Director Sarik Andreasyan relates the absorbing story at a constant pace, maintains a tough gritty tone throughout, stages the computer-simulated scenarios with flair and imagination, and gives this movie a funky stylish look. Moreover, there's a colorful and interesting array of characters, the plot has a few neat twists and turns, the CGI effects are seriously cool and impressive, and there are even a few touching moments of surprising humanity amid all the violence. A nifty little film.
Director Sarik Andreasyan relates the absorbing story at a constant pace, maintains a tough gritty tone throughout, stages the computer-simulated scenarios with flair and imagination, and gives this movie a funky stylish look. Moreover, there's a colorful and interesting array of characters, the plot has a few neat twists and turns, the CGI effects are seriously cool and impressive, and there are even a few touching moments of surprising humanity amid all the violence. A nifty little film.
Not great but watchable...
moorek12 January 2021
Warning: Spoilers
I have a soft spot for some Russian sci-fi movies made in the last 5 years or so. I have not figured it out yet but I think it is the bold, brash English voice dubbing; the strong, in-your-face CGI that varies from good to bad; actors who've not seen before so don't what to expect and attempts to have storylines that while typical, also have something different about them., Also Russian actors seem to have a very stoic persona. It is not just the dubbing but there never seems to be much facial expression. I would be curious if it was a cultural thing. I think it makes people think the acting is poor, and some of it is, but it seems to be very common.
This movie fits that mold very well. All of the things above hold true.
The plot moved along very quickly for the most part. I was never bored. I was curious about each outcome. There certainly didn't seem to be any logic to the game. While people could vote on who they thought were Mafia, there didn't seem to be anything that would allow them to predict that so they chose personal qualities which had nothing to do with being Mafia.
Also the methods of death really don't make much sense. The soldier dies with dignity that he felt he didn't deserve. The convict, who didn't want to die as an underdog, successfully fights off his opponents but falls and hits his head and dies. He wouldn't know that. His last thoughts were how tough he was. The other convict didn't want to die in prison and while he did - for me the implication was living your life in prison, not just a short period and then be executed and even that wasn't as bad as he had some reconciliation before he died.
The first two acts of the movie move along well. The third act starts well too and there are some quirks but the last 10 minutes fall flat. The ending doesn't make sense. The "couple" are told they are going back into the game even though they've already announced there are only the other two left. Yet we next see them out in the real world. We don't see any big finale for the reveal of which of the last two is Mafia or not. This is a TV show and we want that big reveal and the audience is out there waiting for it. But we see the winner walk into his apartment and tell his wife who has been glued to the TV for the whole game. The loser, is supposed to die, but he doesn't either. It's like the ending was just cobbled together at the last minute. It might be bad editing as there are two scenes in the trailer that are not in the movie so maybe some of the missing parts would have explained some of this.
Having said that I still enjoyed it and it past the important test in that I never fast forwarded through it.
This movie fits that mold very well. All of the things above hold true.
The plot moved along very quickly for the most part. I was never bored. I was curious about each outcome. There certainly didn't seem to be any logic to the game. While people could vote on who they thought were Mafia, there didn't seem to be anything that would allow them to predict that so they chose personal qualities which had nothing to do with being Mafia.
Also the methods of death really don't make much sense. The soldier dies with dignity that he felt he didn't deserve. The convict, who didn't want to die as an underdog, successfully fights off his opponents but falls and hits his head and dies. He wouldn't know that. His last thoughts were how tough he was. The other convict didn't want to die in prison and while he did - for me the implication was living your life in prison, not just a short period and then be executed and even that wasn't as bad as he had some reconciliation before he died.
The first two acts of the movie move along well. The third act starts well too and there are some quirks but the last 10 minutes fall flat. The ending doesn't make sense. The "couple" are told they are going back into the game even though they've already announced there are only the other two left. Yet we next see them out in the real world. We don't see any big finale for the reveal of which of the last two is Mafia or not. This is a TV show and we want that big reveal and the audience is out there waiting for it. But we see the winner walk into his apartment and tell his wife who has been glued to the TV for the whole game. The loser, is supposed to die, but he doesn't either. It's like the ending was just cobbled together at the last minute. It might be bad editing as there are two scenes in the trailer that are not in the movie so maybe some of the missing parts would have explained some of this.
Having said that I still enjoyed it and it past the important test in that I never fast forwarded through it.
I get why people don't like it.
berg-7453219 March 2020
This movie and a movie called Guardians are fascinating to me the Guardians being the superior movie. With as many streaming's services out there that are filled with mostly the same public domain horror and sci fi movies and with that I found an number of 50s and 60s Russian language sci fi movies dubbed in English some of these plot intact but several that the American distributor just made a plot to fit what went on the screen. These two movies (this movie and Guardians) with plot intact show a side of the Russia that is really different from those 50s gems and the side is without question a love note to capitalism no way around it full blow capitalism and considering we have a group of idiots that is basically a watered down communism that I think is comparable to people who tout the UKs healthcare system that as it's praised here is an absolute disaster they are trying to rid themselves of as we are implementing more and more nonsense. This movie is that kind of thing showing the word that capitalism is the only way a country prospers. The two bastions of who were willing to kill millions to preserve the people's movement Russia and China have more billionaires together then the rest of the world combined. This movie isn't insert the name of your favorite movie here but it's worth watching because of the stark contrast of what this country was and what it is now. It is entertaining at least if you look at it in the way I tried to frame it. At the very least it's trash sci fi which many people enjoy anyway.
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