| | |  | POLAND | Home » » The Deluge (Potop) | | | | | | | Description: | | Following up on WITH FIRE AND SWORD, this is the heady second volume in the classic trilogy of warfare, romance, and derring do. War rages across Europe in the 17th century. A dashing warrior fights for the heart of a young gentlewoman named Olenka. Based on the novel by Nobel prize-winning author Henryk Sienkiewicz, much of this exciting and romantic film was shot in authentic, ancient Polish castles. | | | Product Details: | | | Actors:
| Daniel Olbrychski, Malgorzata Braunek, Tadeusz Lomnicki, Kazimierz Wichniarz, Wladyslaw Hancza | | Director:
| Jerzy Hoffman | | Format:
| Color, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC | | Language:
| Polish | | Subtitle:
| English | | Number of Discs:
| 2 | | Studio:
| Polart | | Run Time:
| 315 minutes | | DVD Release Date:
| May 18, 2004 | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 10 reviews |
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| New | |
| $21.95+ $4.99 *Shipping | New | | | $21.95+ $4.99 *Shipping | New | | | $28.24 This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. | New | | | $29.95+ $4.89 *Shipping | New | | | $42.95+ $4.99 *Shipping | New | | | $119.99+ $4.99 *Shipping | New | | | $999.99+ $4.99 *Shipping | New | |
| Used | |
| $147.74+ $4.99 *Shipping | Used
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| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
 ( 10 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 14 found the following review helpful:
 The Deluge (Potop with English subtitles)Jan 15, 2000
"The Deluge" (1974), based on the second novel in Henryk Sienkiewicz's nobel prize winning Polish Trilogy, closely covers the first two thirds of the epic tale; the rest is summarized; the historic sets and costuming display impressive amounts of detail. The plot is woven around personal and national struggles with selfishness, short sightedness, and immaturity during a Swedish invasion of Poland in the late seventeenth century; its lessons are very relevant to a modern audience. Don't miss "Colonel Wolodyjowski" (1969) based on "Fire In The Steppe", the third book in the trilogy.
11 of 11 found the following review helpful:
An epic history that captures the spirit of Polish patriotism at the time when the Swedes scourged the Polish countrysideJun 24, 2006
By Richard J. Brzostek
Potop (The Deluge) is the second film directed Jerzy Hoffman depicting the 17th century adventures of Henryk Sienkiewicz's trilogy of novels. This epic history captures the spirit of Polish patriotism at the time when the Swedes scourged the Polish countryside in the 1650s. The story is not entirely straightforward, but has some twists and intrigues.
Daniel Olbrychski plays Kmicic in this film, who gets himself into several touchy situations where doing what seemed right at the time created problems for himself and his reputation. He faces several ethical dilemmas as his actions led to him killing his fellows and his country. As much as he tries to make a good choice, he comes up short. He puts himself in the "line of fire" several times trying to make up for his misdeeds. To me, this was an amazing part of the film as we all try to do well, but do not always make the wisest of decisions. As this theme was repeated several times, it made an impression on me that the film is not just a war story, but has meaningful messages as well, such as our attempt to make the right choices in life.
Kmicic at first seems annoying and even boorish, but as we get to know him, he becomes a very likeable and charming character. The fact that Olbrychski convincingly makes us dislike this character then love him is a reflection of his strong acting skill. Olbrychski plays a different role in all three of Hoffman's movies of the Sienkiewicz trilogy, but this one is the largest, being the lead character.
Potop brings us close and personal into 17th century warfare. Although the battles are gruesome, I have to say the effects and costumes are remarkably well done for this 1974 film. We get to see duels on foot and horseback, the siege of Czestochowa in which the Swedes and the Poles both use cannons to bombard each other, and a large-scale battle in which Tartars then winged-hussars attack a Swedish formation. My favorite has to be all the cannons, so much so that it makes me want to get one. I highly recommend Potop for those that enjoy historic epics. The movie has it all: war, love, and even deeper meanings if we look for them.
16 of 19 found the following review helpful:
the deluge[1.2]Jan 11, 2003
By tuyen van pham
This is one of the most great, beautifull history, war, romantic, European movies .Hopefully it will be release in original screen aspect ratio and faithfull dialogue [ or subtile]. we don't mind paying litlebit more
10 of 11 found the following review helpful:
One of the greatest epics ever madeMar 24, 2006
By William A. Levinson
The protagonist, Andrei Kmicic, is a headstrong young man whose thoughtless violence gets him in trouble and threatens his relationship with his fiancee Olenka Billevich. When war breaks out with Sweden he swears allegiance to Janusz Radziwill, the Hetman of Lithuania. What he doesn't know is that Radziwill has conspired to betray the Commonwealth to the Swedes.
Kmicic (or Kmita) goes along with Radziwill, thus earning the hatred and contempt of former comrades like Michael Wolodyjowski. Upon learning just how bad the Radziwills are, however, he changes sides in an attempt to redeem himself. Sienkiewicz has him play a central role in the siege of Czestochowa (Poland's Fort McHenry), and Sweden's failure to capture the fortress may in fact have been the turning point of the war. He also saves the King of Poland from an ambush and later plays a central role in winning a decisive battle.
As shown in the book, Sienkiewicz actually meant Kmita to symbolize the unruly Polish nobility while Olenka symbolized Poland itself. Of the three books in the Trilogy, "The Deluge" is probably the best because of the protagonist's character development throughout the story and the epic struggle to liberate Poland from the Swedes.
The film's color quality leaves something to be desired and in fact seems to become black-and-white when distant objects are involved. This is perhaps due to the fact that Poland was still under Soviet control and the quality of everything in the Eastern Bloc may have been second-rate. The story and the performances are nonetheless every bit as good if not better than any four-star epic from the black-and-white era and there are no problems with the soundtrack.
7 of 8 found the following review helpful:
The Swedes Were Not Always All IKEA and ABBAMay 07, 2001
By Ian S. Horst
"IS Horst"
Hunky Polish actor Daniel Obrychski plays our hero Andrzej Kmicic in this saga of love, war, and treachery in 17th-century Poland. Kmicic falls in love with the lovely Olenka only to have a pre-Ikea Swedish invasion complicate matters for him. Kmicic unwisely chooses to ally himself with the dastardly Hetman Radziwill who promptly hands over the country to the Swedish King and his evil hordes of musketeers after the Hetman promises to keep Olenka safe. (Pay attention to the hats: it's the only way to keep track of the good guys and the bad guys in this complicated epic. The Swedes wear big floppy wide brimmed ones, the Poles demure feathered pillboxes or furry turbans). Accused of treachery by the loyal Poles, Kmicic is abandoned by his pals including Colonel Wolodyjowski (of the eponymous earlier-filmed sequal), who start a rebellion. Escaping death numerous times, Kmicic steals away (leaving Olenka in the hands of the dastardly fop Prince Boguslav Radziwill), changes his name, and saves the Monastery of Czestochowa with its Black Madonna from the giant Swedish siege gun. He then saves the good Polish king Jan Kazimir from the Swedes, convincing his old pals of his true loyalty to Poland. Defeating the armies of the Swedish King, Prince Boguslav, and English mercenaries in a massively staged battle (with the aid of the exotic Tatars of Aga Khan), Kmicic is near mortally wounded and sent home to die. Meanwhile Olenka has escaped from Boguslav's lair and, after Kmicic's umpteenth miraculous recovery, forgives Kmicic for his sins and it's happy ever after for Poland and its romantic heroes.Anyway it's all grandly filmed to epic proportions with amazing costumes and battle scenes. The production values of this film are much higher than Hoffman's predecessor Pan Wolodyjowski, and the complicated story seems a little more rounded out. The filmmakers seem to have decided Daniel Obrychski needed a LOT of eye makeup to help him look tragic and soulful, but heck, it's art. It is of course a caricature in its comic-book patriotism, but a rewarding and entertaining one at that. The VHS print is adequate, though the subtitles are badly timed and sometimes atrociously spelled and occasionally completely indicipherable. I saw this film for the first time in Poland in 1976 and it holds up well. Interesting little known history and cinematic spectacle.
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