Cubussoli Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

AniInterview Sorry, this movie sucks

ChanFamous I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

Orla Zuniga It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

zif ofoz Boredom and Apathy - that is what this movie is all about. (In my opinion) The lead character Leon and his Trotsky obsession are actually symbolic of leadership. Trotsky dealt with apathy and boredom but found his means to manifest the phenomena of the Russian revolution. Leon must deal with apathy and boredom but will he become a leader?The Odessa Steps dream sequences are a delightful and comical look into Leons head. The movie is worth seeing just for this!I greatly enjoyed the skillful performances from each character. Their dialog is top notch and the director pulls this 'Trotsky' idea together nicely.What is the fate of Leon - we will never know.

DarthVoorhees I loved 'The Trotsky' it is the kind of teen comedy we seldom get, one that acknowledges the hardships of being a teenager but that is also very funny and intelligent. Teens aren't stupid and it seems that many screenwriters think they are. 'The Trotsky' is as much a story about adolescences as it is about teenage brand Bolshevism.Leon Bronstein believes he is the reincarnation of the great hero of the October Revolution Leon Trotsky. I'm sold. It's a brilliant premise and it's execution is seamless. Director Jacob Tierney asks the audience to take a leap of faith. Leon is so convinced of his lineage that he pursues a woman named Alexandra who is ten years older than him because Trotsky did so. This relationship is tricky but I think what makes it work is Jay Baruchel's utmost commitment to the role. He does appear very childlike and this is essential to the brilliance of the story. The teen years are hard and in his uncertainty he turns to Trotsky, the brilliant hero of Bolshevism who was bold and conquered history. Bronstein is questioned about the unsavory details of Trotsky's life such as his infamous murder with the 'ice pick'. The way Baruchel responds is so brilliant, he thinks of Trotsky's life as an adventure which he gets to live through. The way Baruchel delivers this line is funny, uplifting, and even a little sweet. Bronstein wants the whole package; even to the point where he asks a classmate if he is "my Stalin". By all means Leon Bronstein is the kind of character we would expect to be beaten up by cliché jocks but the approach by both Tierney and Baruchel is to create a character driven by passion. Bronstein believes he is Trotsky to the point where others are dragged into his fantasy and I think this satisfies some of the more questionable elements of the script.Not knowing about the Russian Revolution will not hurt your appreciation of the film but it is much funnier if you have some idea about what went down. Tierney has done his homework and the film can become a great inside joke for anyone the least bit familiar with Soviet history.

lewiskendell "It's over. I'm not it. I'm not the man for the job."The Trotsky came out of absolutely nowhere. I don't even know how it appeared on my radar, but I'm glad that it did. It's quite the little gem. It's the story of a teenager (named Leon) from Montreal who believes he is the reincarnation of the Marxist leader Leon Trotsky, and believes that his life will follow that of his predecessor exactly. Right down to exile, relationships, and even cause of death. He finds his "great cause" in the plight of the students at the public high school that his father sends him too, and puts all his energy into forming a union for them.I found myself getting swept up into Leon's struggle against youth apathy very quickly, because he's such a likable character. Jay Baruchel plays him with his typical neurotic performance, but it works. You don't know how seriously to take him at first, but Leon believes so deeply in who he claims to be and what he's doing, that it's easy to let your disbelief go and just roll with it all. All the characters are pretty great, actually, and most of my enjoyment of the movie came from their interactions with each other.So yeah, I'm recommending The Trotsky wholeheartedly. Don't immediately write it off if you have no idea who Leon Trotsky is. It's just a very likable comedy, and it puts a fresh spin on the "high school movie". I enjoyed it.

Greg In Jacob Tierney's The Trotsky, Jay Baruchel plays Leon Bronsetin, a 17-year-old student who believes he is the reincarnation of former Soviet hero, Leon Trotsky. Leon believes so strongly of his re-embodiment that he models his young life around the history of the 20th century Soviet leader including his relentless pursuit of an older woman by the name of Alexandra that he believes is his fate to wed.Leon's first confrontation based on his unfounded notion of birthright comes at his father's factory where Leon begins to assemble the staff to stand up for their rights as employees and suggests the origin of a union. Leon is defiant of his father's intention of meeting scheduled deadlines y rallying the employees in a coup to accept the right to take a full hour for lunch even at the peril of their shipping targets. A sit-in and hunger strike soon follow to fairly chuckable results.Unamused at his son's behavior, the father (Saul Rubinek) ships Leon to public school where Leon immediately picks up the cause for those suffering from the fascist regime of the educational system. This puts Leon and his school principal (Colm Feore) on a collision course where school officials oppose Leon's determination to set up a student Union and give his classmates a voice against tyranny.The Trotsky is a mildly entertaining but far too lengthy of a film that tries to parallel a history lesson into an amusing story of a misunderstood young boy. Baruchel plays the titular character incredibly well invoking the awkwardness of a young Leon trying to fight back against rival adults countering his arguments. But unfortunately, the heavy handedness of the subject matter and length to which the single joke is expected to encompass, wears on the patience of the audience and many will be lost by the low keyed humor coupled with a slow momentum build towards an anti-climax.Too often in The Trotsky, we experience scenes that make the film uneven in tone. The 17-year-old's sexual relationship with a 27-year-old and the hostage taking of the school principal are just two samples of how the film takes a smart subject and intelligent dialogue and warps it into reels of unease. These sequences do little to help you create a bond with the lead character so that the ending might have any combined sense of accomplishment where audiences might care about the fate or future of the central character.The Trotsky isn't all bad, but one can't help but wonder who the film was made for enjoyment. Younger audiences won't care for the adult situations, older audiences won't have the patience or relate to the cause and fans of Canadian or independent film will be worn down by the lack of any real energy or force to carry us through nearly two hours of paper thin flimsiness.The Trotsky, therefore is a miss. It would have been a great short, possibly even an interesting page turner of a book, but it is hardly a film worth looking out for.