The movie about the 16th-century Cossack revolt against the Poles, who had previously wronged them, begins with a striking musical piece by Franz Waxman. However, the quality declines significantly after that initial impression. Yul Brynner doesn't seem at ease in his central character; he’s chosen to confront the Polish forces according to his own strategy, sending his two sons off to Kiev for an education. His son,…

_**Cossacks vs. Poles on the steppes of Ukraine (actually Argentina)**_ The film depicts Cossacks in 16th-century Ukraine rebelling against their Polish rulers. Yul Brynner portrays a robust colonel, and Tony Curtis plays his oldest son, who makes the mistake of falling for a princess from Kiev, portrayed by Christine Kaufmann. "Taras Bulba" (1962) adapts the initial portion of Nikolai Gogol’s renowned novella,…

J. Lee Thompson directed Taras Bulba, with Waldo Salt and Karl Tunberg adapting Nikolai Gogol’s story for the screen. The film stars Yul Brynner, Tony Curtis, Christine Kaufmann, and Perry Lopez, and comes from United Artists as a DeLuxe/Eastman Color/Panavision production, featuring music by Franz Waxman and cinematography by Joseph MacDonald. The narrative, loosely based on Gogol’s short novel, recounts a Cossac…