Production design, at some stages the grumpy old man fell in to the sets like a broomstick in the corner, thats how realistic it felt. its a historic drama from the 2nd half of the 19th century podolia region, that is geographically shared between southeast poland and western ukraine in todays atlas'es. its a miniateur dr mengele physician, that uses his qualifications to experiment with ether and others compounds , on treatment of all kinds of pain. NO3 is a beloved eteric gas that have been praised by women in labour for ages, and to use and trying out to fix and relieve the patients from their pain is truly a business on life and death..
its also a spystory woven into this story, the secret story, but see the film to uncloak the dagger of macabria hippocrattica obscura.
the cast does an extraordinary job at all stages, though the historical timeline are hard to follow, the filmography is of knifeedge sharpness that has been a polish trademark for years, the score are arousing and the staging and production department have made a golden gun to this drama.
it may feel foreign due to the slavic language and nature, and the political powers unknown to most 150 years has past, so do refresh some geography and history before viewing, that will enhance the gratitude of a well made movie. its a recommend.
