As somebody who actually studdied and loves history...

Rating: 2/10 (4 November 2015)

Before I give my criticism, here are the good things: 1) costumes are good. so are all the props. 2) camera work is good 3) as a generic movie, it's not bad Now to the things that to me, make this movie a piece of crap. ABOUT 80% OF THE STORY ARE LIES! And while I don't mind Hollywood fiction, this is going beyond that. The Bielski brothers in the movie are given credit for AT LEAST twice as much as they actually did. AND the crimes they committed are never mentioned. To me, as a Pole, this is unacceptable. Germans are shown in WW II movies as the bad guys.. killing, abusing, torturing etc. Yet in this case, the "heroes" weren't that much different. The bielski brothers sided with soviets and abused and persecuted the Polish people. They helped the soviet military and police hunt down, capture and execute almost 200 of polish resistance fighters from the A.K. (Armia Krajowa - National Army) who fought for free, independent Poland against BOTH the soviets and Germans. They took part in AT LEAST 2 documented civilian purges, and raided the victim's belongings and homes afterwards. Yes, they did help other Jews. But they did it by committing war crimes and numerous other atrocities on the Polish civilians and the underground freedom fighters who only wanted their nation free and unbound by foreign occupants. In that aspect this movie is AN ABSOLUTE LIE, spreading false information and made up facts, romanticizing criminals and abusing the memory of the people who died by their hand and as a result of their actions.