Bitter Harvest

Name: Bitter Harvest
Genre: Drama, Romance, War
Released: February 24, 2017
Duration: 103 min
Rating: 34
Cast: Barry Pepper, Max Irons, Samantha Barks, Terence Stamp

2017

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Generally unfavorable reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Ratings

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6.8

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6.8	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Ratings

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Bitter Harvest

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Movie Details & Credits

Roadside Attractions | Release Date: February 24, 2017 | R

Starring: Barry Pepper, Max Irons, Samantha Barks, Terence Stamp

Summary: Based on one of the most overlooked tragedies of the 20th Century, Bitter Harvest is a powerful story of love, honor, rebellion and survival as seen through the eyes of two young lovers caught in the ravages of Joseph Stalin’s genocidal policies against Ukraine in the 1930s. As Stalin advances the ambitions of the burgeoning Soviet Union,Based on one of the most overlooked tragedies of the 20th Century, Bitter Harvest is a powerful story of love, honor, rebellion and survival as seen through the eyes of two young lovers caught in the ravages of Joseph Stalin’s genocidal policies against Ukraine in the 1930s. As Stalin advances the ambitions of the burgeoning Soviet Union, a young artist named Yuri (Max Irons) battles to survive famine, imprisonment and torture to save his childhood sweetheart Natalka (Samantha Barks) from the “Holodomor,” the death-by-starvation program which ultimately killed millions of Ukrainians. Against this tragic backdrop, Yuri escapes from a Soviet prison and joins the anti-Bolshevik resistance movement as he battles to reunite with Natalka and continue the fight for a free Ukraine.… Expand

Director: George Mendeluk

Genre(s): Drama, Romance, War

Rating: R

Runtime: 103 min

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Critic Reviews

RogerEbert.com Godfrey Cheshire

Feb 24, 2017

Its narrative and visual approach almost suggests a compendium of the clichés one should avoid in a film like this. Read full review

Movie Nation Roger Moore

Feb 22, 2017

Bitter Harvest never amounts to more than a colorful misfire, a picture with much of the pageant of the period, but little of the roiling passions that dominate politics in the Breadbasket of Europe, even today. Read full review

Ignatiy Vishnevetsky

Feb 22, 2017

Even if it weren’t about an atrocity, this training-wheels Doctor Zhivago would still be lame. Read full review

Time Out London Cath Clarke

Feb 22, 2017

This forgotten chapter of history deserves to be better told. Read full review

Sheri Linden

Feb 23, 2017

Given the scope of the early-1930s atrocity, the most shocking thing about director George Mendeluk’s new dramatization is how utterly devoid of emotional impact it is. Read full review

Tom Keogh

Feb 22, 2017

Despite the stakes, Mendeluk can’t scare up any particular urgency, largely because everything is so contrived and inauthentic. Read full review

Brad Wheeler

Mar 2, 2017

This is a story of villainous oppression, unfortunately told with oppressive earnestness. Read full review

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User Reviews

Andr9898

May 7, 2021

the film deje interesting beautiful places even too for that time good sound and plot

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Azaz

Feb 26, 2017

This film blew me away. I was expecting something depressing and boring. But it's opposite! This film is so beautiful, it has romance, lots of action, gorgeous scenery, and it keeps you in suspense the entire time! It explains so many things in history as well. I understand there's so muchThis film blew me away. I was expecting something depressing and boring. But it's opposite! This film is so beautiful, it has romance, lots of action, gorgeous scenery, and it keeps you in suspense the entire time! It explains so many things in history as well. I understand there's so much more to be told, and hope it's the first one of many more future great films on the same topic. I see Oscar and Emmy and several other nominations coming. Don't miss the chance to see it while it's still showing. You will have time well spent!… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

Smoothrunner

Mar 1, 2017

How many movies about 2-nd World War and it's horrors we watched? How good we know the topic and thus made it popular for Movie-studios?

It is a rhetoric questions and now we have a great deal of movies in pantheon: 'Saving Privat Ryan', 'Schindler's List', 'The Book Thief', 'El laberintoHow many movies about 2-nd World War and it's horrors we watched? How good we know the topic and thus made it popular for Movie-studios?

It is a rhetoric questions and now we have a great deal of movies in pantheon: 'Saving Privat Ryan', 'Schindler's List', 'The Book Thief', 'El laberinto del fauno' etc. They are absolutely great and give audience real feelings of horrors of war and occupation. They recreate emotions people felt. They wake our imagination and show the true story of event's through peopl's hurts.

But what could have happened if world could not defeat Hitler's tyranny? And answer to that question is not always an anti-utopia as '1984'. We have real stories that have never been told, we have lot of terrors and crimes made to the human who could never rise their voice loud enough for world to hear.

'Bitter Harvest' is one of that movies - it has a very great deal of drawbacks: overacting, little scale of actions, poor camera work, and the main thing - actors who don't understand that deepest despair, total horror and loneliness of whole nation that has no friendly-country, only those who wanted to plunder and take something. The deepest despair is not shown at all. As example above '1984' - gives more bright emotion which was in human's mind. Ukraine story of 1920-1991 is a story of nation defeated by tyrants and silent for centuries. People fought, suffered and died - unknown and futile victims. Their stories were never told to the world. The horrors of Russian occupation was so terrible - that hundred years after they are still forbidden for World to know. There was countless millions of Ukrainians who was always ahead in struggle for freedom, but envy of historical neighbors have neither gave real support, nor even allow to tell about Ukrainian identity. This despair is in the basis of national Hymn and ideology - to survive, to live through defeat and hatred toward you. Movie lacks it - seems George Mendeluk just don't understand that deepest tragedy of millions and tries to imagine what it was like - but he fails. The main part is that despite drawbacks described above movie opens the topic for discussion and further work. It is absolutely sure it cannot be done without knowing the Ukraine, living here and knowing our live histories. This topic is of utmost importance as even now in 2017 Russian Federation does the same things they did fir centuries: they enslave. kill and LIE. Their lie is very loud and sophisticated, they 've made far more successful methods then Hitler's propaganda. And they have never been defeated as Nazis, so they turn reality upside down and even now defend all that was done centuries ago against conquered nations.

Movie lacks of authenticity, actor's work is absolutely synthetic, scale of actions is too narrow - so it cannot be rated as WorldWarII movies. But movie reopen the topic that is even more important than World War II - as crimes done in USSR in 1920's did the groundwork for all what come later. Showing this to the world is of utmost importance for history and humankind. This is the first step into unknown and George Mendeluk has courage to do that – so he deserves respect and honor. I hope that this topic will bring more masters to understand and bring world the truth that was concealed and ignored for so long.

Author: Mykhailo Sazhniev… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

jw315208

Mar 7, 2017

Solid movie overall. It is bit cliche but its entertaining for the most part. Really doesn't deserve all the negative reviews from critics. I would consider it a good a one time see.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Mauro_Lanari

Jun 4, 2019

The director is so ridiculous as to be an outrage to the Ukrainian genocide. (Mauro Lanari)

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

wewlad1

Feb 26, 2017

This movie glossed over a lot of things in history.
1. They make life in pre-bulshevik Russia look good when really they were all starving illiterate peasants. 2. They don't mention the bad weather earlier in the year that partially caused the famine in the first place
3. Greed of theThis movie glossed over a lot of things in history.
1. They make life in pre-bulshevik Russia look good when really they were all starving illiterate peasants. 2. They don't mention the bad weather earlier in the year that partially caused the famine in the first place
3. Greed of the kulaks. Kulaks were peasant farmers and were the main victims of the holodomor.they never mentioned the fact that before the bulsheviks kulaks would sell grain at high prices when everyone was starving and burned grain they couldn't sell. They were basically bloodsuckers.
4. This is a historical event and they try to make it a romance.… Expand

0 of 6 users found this helpful06

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