Csillagosok Katonák (aka The Red And The White) (1967)

Set in Central Russia during the Civil War of 1918, the film follows the entanglements of the "Red" soldiers (pro-communist) and the counter revolutionary "White" soldiers (pro Tsarist) along the hills of the Volga. Written and directed by Miklos Jansco, the film is aesthetically a visual feast. Stunningly shot in wide screen (in Agascope) B&W and with long takes by Tamas Somio, it is a moving tableau of haunting images. Having said that, I wish I liked it better as a film. After the first half hour, I realized that film would be a relentless series of killings and executions and that pretty much sums up the movie. Yes, we all know war is Hell, war is vicious, war is cruel but 90 minutes of killing gets old very quickly. We're not given any characters (there's no central character) to invest in and it's often confusing to follow who's who and who's killing who to the point that we just don't care anymore. With Jozsef Madaras, Tibor Molnar, Andras Kozak and Tatyana Konyukhova.