Kaloyan (1963)
Dako Dakovski
Bulgaria
109 mins, color, Bulgarian
In 1018, Bulgaria fell under the rule of the Byzantine Emperor Basil II, or, as he proudly called himself, The Slayer of Bulgarians, which dubious distinction he "won" in 1014 for his exceedingly cruel treatment of 15,000 Bulgarian prisoners of war: he blinded 99 out of every 100 and left one eye to the remainder so they can guide the others. Despite sporadic attempts to overthrow Byzantine rule, Constantinople managed to defeat the disorganized rebels and was generally successful in attracting many members of the ruling class to their side. However, in 1186, the two brothers Petur and Asen took advantage of the troubles the Byzantines were having with the Normans and launched a new rebellion. They defeated most of the armies the Emperor sent to put down the revolt and an uneasy truce was established with Constantinople recognizing the de facto restoration of Bulgaria, but refusing to acknowledge the rulers as kings. Using skillful diplomacy, the Byzantines managed to split the leaders and organized several plots, two of which succeeded in killing first Asen, and then Petur. The rule thus fell into the hands of the youngest brother, Kaloyan, in 1197, and this is the year, with which the film begins.
The story follows the brief but eventful and eminently successful rule of Kaloyan (1197-1207). At this time, the political situation on the Balkan peninsula was extremely perilous, owing to the constant irritation Bulgarians and Byzantines caused each other. However, the greatest threat was to come from the West, brought about by the infamous Fourth Crusade. Kaloyan tried to bid his time and scored several notable victories (e.g. the fall of Varna, shown in the film) but generally realized that with his meager resources and lacking manpower he could not challenge the might of the Byzantine Empire. The advance of the Crusaders gave him a golden opportunity and when the Byzantines foolishly refused an alliance to stop them (which led to the sack of Constantinople), Kaloyan used the time to establish his control over several other cities. For a while his diplomatic maneuvering with the Vatican was successful and he was recognized and crowned as king (although he continued to refer to himself as an emperor). However, the conquering Latin armies led by Emperor Baldwin treated the Bulgarian shabbily and claimed they were mere vassals of the conquered Eastern Empire. This led to a military clash, which ended with the complete rout of the Crusaders in 1205. (Significantly, the Bulgarians were victorious because the peasants rose against the conquerors, a very rare event.) The film ends with the wretched Baldwin kneeling before the triumphant Kaloyan (It had to end on a high note, for only two years later Kaloyan himself was assassinated as he was laying siege to Thessaloniki)
For one not versed in Bulgarian history, much of the film will be mysterious, if not utterly incomprehensible. Most of the complicated politics, frequent treachery, and the strange power relations between king and nominal vassals (all featured in the film) will quickly lose many viewers. Unfortunately, the 1963 production will probably fail to hold them with eye candy. Despite the many extras supplied by the army, the great costumes, and the excellent locations, the battles do not look or feel epic, mostly due to bad choreography and abysmally artificial sound work. The directing style owes a great debt to the Soviet school, which many Westerners also find frustratingly subtle in the most interesting goings on (e.g. jealousy --- which, by the way, played a huge role in this story as it is Kaloyan's wife who is suspected of being involved with his assassination), and annoyingly blatant in the less important stuff (e.g. unlikely patriotism).
The acting is generally tolerable, but Vassil Stoychev (Kaloyan) was superb. He has the stature and the charisma of a king, and he behaved himself with such believable dignity that it was a pleasure to watch. If the film were not marred by the subpar fight sequences and the atrocious music, it might have scored much higher. If one is interested in other (and better) epics about the turbulent Bulgarian history, there are many of superior quality, especially the ones made for the 1,300-year anniversary of the state in the early 1980s.
June 13, 2001. BLS