
Forbidden Empire
Seen it?2014 | 128 min | Thriller, Adventure, Mystery, Fantasy
Why it’s a Weeknight Watch
With a lukewarm 49% audience score and little lasting buzz, it's a mixed bag. Fine if it's on; don't plan your night around it.
Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.Is it for you?
- Who'll love it
- Best for fans of a good haunting and fantasy readers. The scares come from the creaks and shadows as much as the jumps. If you loved The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It or The Witch, start here. Its magic has rules, and the story plays by them.
- The mood
- Tense.
- The pace
- Lean, with little time wasted, at 2 hr 8 min.
- What might put you off
- Rated R: meant for adults.
- It's in Russian, so expect subtitles (or a dub).
- Not ideal if you just want to unwind.
Early 18th century. Cartographer Jonathan Green undertakes a scientific voyage from Europe to the East. Having passed through Transylvania and crossed the Carpathian Mountains, he finds himself in a small village lost in impassible woods. Nothing but chance and heavy fog could bring him to this cursed place. People who live here do not resemble any other people which the traveler saw before that. The villagers, having dug a deep moat to fend themselves from the rest of the world, share a naive belief that they could save themselves from evil, failing to understand that evil has made its nest in their souls and is waiting for an opportunity to gush out upon the world.
How it earned its rating
- CriticsNot counted
Not enough reviews on record yet
- AudiencesBelow par
Our audience score: 49%
- AwardsNot counted
No major awards or nominations
- Box office & staying powerSolid
$39 million worldwide on a $26 million budget; still draws a steady audience long after release
- Buzz & cultural impactBelow par
About 60K people sought it out in the past year
Trailer
More like this
The EntityWeeknight WatchAnother supernatural mystery, though it's more of a weeknight watch.
The WatchersWeeknight WatchAnother supernatural fantasy film, though it's more of a weeknight watch.
A Dark SongSunday Safe BetAnother supernatural fantasy film, and a safe bet for a quiet night.
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do ItSaturday SpecialAnother supernatural mystery, and a Saturday Special.
The WitchFriday Night FlickAnother critically acclaimed supernatural fantasy film.
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Cast & crew
Directed by Oleg Stepchenko
- Jason FlemyngJonathan Green
- Aleksey ChadovPetrus
- Agniya DitkovskiteNastusya
- Yuriy TsuriloSotnik
- Olga ZaytsevaPannochka
- Aleksandr YakovlevOverko
- Igor JijikineDorosh
- Valeriy ZolotukhinYavtukh
- Nina RuslanovaZhena Yavtukha
- Viktor BychkovKuznets