Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

The plot is based on the WWII operation to assassinate the Reich's third in command, Reinhard Heydrich. A group of Czechoslovakian soldiers chose to follow orders, a rather commendable action that the film throughly explores. Disregarding their own fates, they chose to do what they believed was the right decision made by government officials in London. They knew the power that Heydrich held in Czechoslovakia and was a valuable asset to the Nazi regime. The beauty of this film, is that I knew nothing about Operation Anthropoid. Having watched this I've taken several pieces of information away therefore proving to be a successful representation of the story. The cast were all pretty good, especially Jamie Dornan who conveyed that vulnerability really well. The legend though, and I use that word with great power, is Cillian Murphy. Possibly one of the most underrated actors working today, he was superb yet again. The more serious and level headed of the pair, he showed emotional conviction and a sense of authority. One thing I did notice was that the forced Czech accents were fading in certain scenes, I'm not the biggest fan of English actors putting on fake European accents. Sean Ellis was a solid director, the final act alone impressed me. Oh and the last five minutes...palpable. Some really beautiful cinematography and was able to capture the tension terrifically. The production design was also fitting, it felt like 1940's Prague and I couldn't tell if any green screen backdrops were used so it looked authentic to me. My biggest negative is the pacing. The first half is so slow and monotonous that I was convinced this was going to go no where. Second half? BOOM! Action, thrills, tension! Perfect for a big screen iteration. The third act is just relentless war...definitely captivating. I also wished the screenplay explored the consequences of the assassination attempt, there was just one scene. Overall though, a slow first half leads to a thrilling second half. Educational and exciting.

If you want to know about Operation Anthropoid, save yourself 2 hours and just go read the Wikipedia entry. What does the movie add to it? Some good acting maybe, a few nice reconstructions of Prague, but that's it. Some random violence (torture scenes), if that's your sort of thing. Not much in terms of good cinematography.Beyond that, you will learn that denizens of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia spoke perfect German for the Germans, whereas the Czechs spoke fluent English with an accent, mixed with a few (usually mispronounced) Czech words (characters are all Czech, whereas some actors are Czech and some English...) Name declensions are sometimes done the Czech way, sometimes not. Characters will comment on other characters' "lack of German accent" in speaking said English-with-fake-Czech dialect. Seriously?Even more disturbing is any real depth to the characters' motivations, nor concerns about the whole morality of their actions. Indeed, in the midst of the apex of 20th century's concentration of senseless massacre and utter Evil, does any of the characters or indeed the movie itself offer any insight into what defines that Evil, and how to actually an effectively fight it?(light) SPOILERS BELOW (it's history anyway)Indeed, the whole rationale of the title's namesake mission is unquestioned. When the two main characters arrive and explain it to the resistance, they do offer reasonable doubt regarding the obvious fact that it will only make matters worse and only cause more deaths (indeed that is what happened: retaliation deaths in the thousands, for what?). Their answer? "We are soldiers and we have our orders." No one raises the obvious question: isn't this *precisely* the kind of irresponsible and immoral attitude without which a grand total of zero of WWII's 50 million deaths would have been possible? And whence are the orders coming from, mind you? British government (the one responsible for Munich) and the Czechoslovak government-in-exile (the one responsible for accepting Munich and surrendering). So the two governments responsible for turning over not only a whole country (with a large Jewish minority...) over for nazi massacre, but also a country with top-notch military equipment, and one of the most heavily industrialized of the world at that time: both essential for further nazi war effort. Shouldn't maybe further orders, obviously *also* leading to massive deaths, coming from those same governments, be questioned maybe? Or indeed, start wondering about the very problem of entrusting whole nations's destinies into the hands of a few (poorly selected) individuals, and then unquestioningly obeying their orders?This movie offers none of that and is thus utterly useless.

Movie Review: "Anthropoid" (2016)A hauntingly-surprising World-War-II action thriller with historical sophistication directed by Sean Ellis, who also stops denying to operate a fast-rhythmic-passing Super 16mm film camera by Arri Munich Rentals accompanied with superb-looking Hawk V-lite 16 lenses, when editor Richard Mettler puts an engaging cast surrounding freedom fighters Jan Kubis and Josef Gabcik, here match-making from the very first parachute-descends into push-play atmospheric snowy forest actor Jamie Dornan, known for "Fifty Shades of Grey" performing to utmost anxiety-denying beats of war action, when spy agent partner Cillian Murphy, acknowledged for leading Danny Boyle's horror-thriller "28 Days Later" to international successes, as "Anthropoid" continues with a relentless assassination plot in ultra-focused on trafficking Prague daytime streets action scenes to rebounds with fantastic range-playing actor Toby Jones as needed suspense-adding support into a fully-immersive final rebel-stand-off from bullet-storming hallways of city's center church to floated basement confronting inevitable conclusions of Officer-avenging Nazi-oppressors that puts the 20 minute showdown into the major league of being able to compete with any Hollywood comparable. © 2018 Felix Alexander Dausend (Cinemajesty Entertainments LLC)

This is one intensive, edge-of-your-seat-movie. A warning to some; if you like a movie that at least makes you grin, smile or laugh at least once during the film – this is NOT the movie for you. Anthropoid is a rigid, matter-of-fact, historical-based movie about the perils of war and the nail-biting pressures associated with trying to assassinate someone in an occupied territory. I would put this movie in line with 'Black Mass', regarding its callus subject matter and lack of any joyous moments. However, with all that said, I enjoyed the movie for its frank delivery. No-frills were added to this one, just so they could appeal to everyone. A very good WWII movie about the occupation of Czechoslovakia.