eckert-karolina After watching this painfully long movie, I sat several minutes in disbelief. Such an important topic! Such a wasted opportunity! The movie concentrated on whitewashing Poles and tried to show them as martyrs - there was nonspace for doubt, free thinking, a bit of reflection. The complicated history of Western Ukraine is shown without any respect to its complexity. The movie forgets about centuries of Polish occupation of the land, broken promises, past conflicts. I was ao incredibly dissatisfied! It looked like the director tried to shock the audience with violence to cover up the lacking in political and sociological analysis. Many fragments - like the opening wedding sequence - were given way too much screen time, with others - political movements, for example - were just brushed on. Whole movie seemed quite off balance. And the pseudo- poetic, metaphorical ending was just too much. It is a shame that the writing and directing was so weak. It is also disappointing as this director is very capable- see Roza for example. I fear political influence of the many sponsors. There are few good performances, mostly from secondary characters. The main actress is a bit lifeless, she's only ok in opening sequence, but it might be the director 's vision - her defence mechanism to what's happening around her. Severely disappointed- don't waste your time. Read some smart essays about Volhynia online instead.

euroGary The 2017 Edinburgh International Film Festival showed 'Wołyń' under the title 'Volhynia'. The film's official English title, however, is 'Hatred'.While Europe was tearing itself apart during the Second World War, another conflict, between Poles and Ukrainians, was going on in eastern Europe as militant Ukrainian organisations sought to expel all non-Ukrainians (chiefly Poles, but Jews as well) from the territory of a future Ukrainian state. This film centres on the impact of the violence on an ethnically-mixed village of Poles, Ukrainians and Jews, with the central character being Zosia, the prettiest (and blondest) girl in the village, who is in love with Petro, the prettiest (and blondest) *boy* in the village. But her father marries her off instead to Maciej, the village's much-older alderman. As awful as this is for Zosia, these domestic concerns pale into insignificance as the inter-ethnic violence is unleashed...... and unleashed it certainly is. When the film's interminable opening wedding scene ended I was glad because it meant the women finally stopped singing; but then I got bored with the violence - there are only so many times you can see someone having their spine pulled out before you stop paying attention. And that is a shame, because this is, after all, based on real events and real suffering. Director/writer Wojciech Smarzowski (adapting short stories by Stanisław Srokowski) would have done better to produce a shorter film (2½ hours is too long), keeping the character development and focussing on just one or two violent incidents - that, I feel, would have had more impact (and not resulted in this particular viewer, on seeing someone pulled in half between two horses in yet another gory scenario, dispassionately thinking "surely his arms would pop out first?")I found it difficult to keep up with who was Polish and who was Ukrainian - although the sub-titles are helpfully laballed 'Pol' and 'Ukr' - as so many of the characters speak in both languages anyway. I did appreciate that the film made the point that Poles were not only victims: they committed acts of violence also. And I liked the character bits. So I would recommend watching it once, but I doubt that I will watch it again.

denis888 Well, where to begin. Films about genocide, especially such touchy subject as Polish-Ukranian relations in 1939-1943 in the region of Wolyn, are not an easy treat. The very theme of mass murder and brotherly hate is never easy, so this epic film about mass atrocities of Poles in Wolyn leaves a very heavy heart. If you are afraid of ferocious scenes, blood, dismembered bodies, mutilated kids or burned villages, then don't. Don't try to watch this film. It is awesome, it is executed with a n utmost precision and the tempo is impeccable, but it is way too difficult to see all those horrible scenes and what is even more horrid is the fact that it's never going to be easier, but only heavier and gloomier and worse for main hero and her suffering family. I will not retell the events of this film, just want to say - be warned and watch this at your discretion, as this is a very very severe and naked fear film. It demands all your patience and certain amount of guts, yes, guts, since the bloody scenes are really frightening. Need I say more? This is a masterpiece, truly so.

Tomasz Dire, thick atmosphere of waiting for massacre you knew that will happen. Pure terror unleashed at night, when neighbors come to kill you in one hundred different ways preceded by showing how this community was like at time of peace. You would not think that it is really possible. Marriages, working together, social space and to some degree language is common. But there are some differences on both sides...Dmytro Klyachkivsky citation: "We should make a large action of the liquidation of the Polish element." To understand this film properly you need some historic and psychological (Lucifer effect) background. I am certain that when reversed things would have gone south anyway.Wolyn (Volhynia) is historic region where poles and Ruthenians lived peacefully for centuries (by that I mean peasants). Around XVII century Poland gained more territory in what today is called Ukraine. Polish noble class assimilated Ruthenian (today Ukrainian) noble class. One of Ruthenians even become elected king of the Commonwealth of Polish and Lithuania. Wolyn alone was in polish rule from XIV century.This whole territory east of Wolyn and including Wolyn was a place where polish peasant run away from polish noble class (szlachta) rule and mixed with local Ruthenian population.Commonwealth wanted to suppress those people. Thousands of them remained on king payroll as soldiers - so they knew how to fight. Those people responded accordingly with Chmielnicki uprisings, killing Poles and assimilated Ruthenian nobles. Century of bloodshed ended by Russian subjugating most of these lands. This is why eastern Ukraine (Russian rule) is different from western Ukraine (Polish rule).Era of nationalism resulted in Ukrainian National Revival when Ukrainian people gained new identity and were distancing from Polish and Russian cultures.In interbellum period in Poland unfortunately won the idea of unity - Ukrainians and Belorussians was to be assimilated into Polish culture (there was project of creating Polish, Belorussian and Ukrainian separated states in confederation) Ukrainians responded with violence. And film starts when this period is about to end. Firstly Russians witch to this date see Ukraine as "little Russia" in a derogatory way) and next Germans which promised own state to Ukrainians.Ukraine had seen Hitler as they savior in a way. Organisation born from this feelings decided that Wolyn must be ethnically cleansed to ensure Ukrainian nature of this region in future. That's when Lucifer Effect starts to sink in. Same was in Tutsi - Hutu case.