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The Fencer
The Fencer
Finnish director Klaus Härö's historical sports drama, Miekkailija, aims to reach higher than it actually can.
It's the true story of Endel Nelis, who fled Leningrad to avoid the Soviet police, then ends up in a small town in Estonia where he acts as a Phys Ed teacher and begins teaching his young students the art of fencing.
At a mere 90 minutes long the film doesn't have a whole lot of time to really flesh out the story it has in it's grasp. However, it's thoughtfully directed with convincing performances, exquisite photography & music and generally all around appealing to experience. All until it reaches just a little past the half-way mark where it becomes a generic underdog sports film. The outcome is far too expected and rushed, leaving very little room for the heart it yearns to touch.
It's the true story of Endel Nelis, who fled Leningrad to avoid the Soviet police, then ends up in a small town in Estonia where he acts as a Phys Ed teacher and begins teaching his young students the art of fencing.
At a mere 90 minutes long the film doesn't have a whole lot of time to really flesh out the story it has in it's grasp. However, it's thoughtfully directed with convincing performances, exquisite photography & music and generally all around appealing to experience. All until it reaches just a little past the half-way mark where it becomes a generic underdog sports film. The outcome is far too expected and rushed, leaving very little room for the heart it yearns to touch.
3 makeshift epees out of 5
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