Hristo Shopov Movies

As adapted from the roman by Antonia Arslan and co-directed by legendary Italian brothers Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, The Lark Farm marks one of the few international features to tackle the Armenian genocide head-on. The story (with its thematic parallels, in the early scenes, to De Sica's 1970 Garden of the Finzi-Continis) concerns the Avakian clan. An Armenian family living an affluent lifestyle and periodically shuttling back and forth between their two comfortable homes, the Avakians feel convinced that the rising tide of Turkish hostility on the horizon means little to them and will scarcely affect their day to day. Indeed, The Avakians ignore the warning signs, and set about preparing for a family reunion with the impending visit of two well-to-do sons - landowner Aram, who resides in Turkey, and Assadour, a physician living in Venice. Lo and behold, these illusions come crashing down when a Turkish military regiment crops up at the house, annihilates every male member of the family and forces the ladies to trek off into the Syrian desert, where they will be left to rot. Meanwhile, a handsome Turkish officer (Alessandro Preziosi) falls for Aram's daughter and makes an aggressive attempt to deliver her and her family from certain death, even as the circumstances surrounding him attest to the astounding difficulty of this goal. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

While the major American TV networks were jockeying to be the first to present a filmed biography of the late Pope John Paul II, cable's humble Hallmark Channel managed to beat everyone to the punch with the four-hour Karol: A Man Who Became Pope. Actually, this made-for-TV film was a Polish-Italian co-production, debuting on Italian television as Karol, un Uomo Diventato Papa on April 8, 2005, and subsequently released theatrically in Poland. Curiously, it had been filmed in English, so no dubbing was necessary -- thus enabling Hallmark to rush the production onto American screens as early as August 15, 2005. Piotr Adamczyk stars as Karol Wojtyla, whose tireless fight for humanity and basic fundamental rights begins with the German invasion of his native Poland in 1939. Appalled at the brutal treatment afforded his Jewish friends, Karol turns to religion as a means of making a difference in the world, and with the help of several other like-minded individuals mounts a nonviolent, but extremely effective, anti-Nazi resistance. Ordained as a priest at war's end, Karol finds himself fighting another form of godless totalitarianism, this one from the Communists who have overtaken his country. Ultimately, Father Karol Wojtyla's noble mission culminates in his being elected as Pope John Paul II in 1978 -- and it was surely no coincidence that Poland's liberation was now but a matter of time. Although A Man Who Became Pope looks lavish and expensive, it was very economically produced, and had made back its cost many times over before its acquisition by Hallmark. The film is also a "winner" in terms of its straight-on portrayal of the pontiff, and the commendably sincere, unadorned performances of virtually every actor in the cast. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A young boy is sent on a remarkable odyssey as he flees a Communist prison camp in this historical drama, set in Eastern Europe in the early '50s. David (Ben Tibber) is a 12-year-old boy who was sentenced with his parents to a Bulgarian labor camp when they were found guilty of political subversion; he hasn't seen his folks in years, and looks to fellow inmate Johannes (Jim Caviezel) for protection and guidance. One day, David is able to escape, and as he flees, he is given a sealed envelope with strict instructions that he is to travel to Denmark, and he cannot open the letter until he gets there. David makes his way to Greece, stows away on an Italian ship, and is befriended by Maria (Viola Carinci), a girl he saves from a fire. Maria convinces her wealthy family to take David in, but when they become curious about his background, David realizes he's in danger and is soon on the run once again. In time, David makes friends with Sophie (Joan Plowright), a kind Swiss woman who gives him a home and is willing to help him complete his long journey. I Am David was adapted from the novel North to Freedom by Anne Holm, and represented a change of pace for director Paul Feig, best known for his work on such offbeat television comedies as Arrested Development and Freaks and Geeks. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi