Tag: russia

20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL Review: Thoughtful and Provocative

Mstyslav Chernov directed the documentary, covering the first 20 days after Russian invaded Ukraine.

Locarno 2022 Review: In FAIRYTALE, Alexander Sokurov Revives Tyrants

Sokurov's disturbing and comical deepfake film is a cross-over between 'Dante's Inferno' and Samuel Beckett's 'Waiting for Godot; with the artistic sensitivity of Goya's tableaux.

DVD Review: GOLDEN VOICES, Wistful, Unsentimental Nostalgia

Vladimir Friedman and Maria Belkin star in a tale of migration, told by Evgeny Ruman and Ziv Berkovich, coming soon on DVD from Music Box Films.

Tallinn 2021 Review: NO LOOKING BACK, Bloody Family Feud Saved by Sardonic Kid

Russian director Kirill Sokolov ('Why Don't You Just Die!') returns with an ultraviolent family feud encore.

Locarno 2021 Review: GERDA, Social Realism Meets Fairy Tale in Russian Drama

Filmmaker Natalya Kudryashova finds spirituality in the harsh reality of modern-day Russia.

Review: PROFILE, Making New Mythologies and Morality Tales

Director Timur Bekmambetov's mystery-thriller stars Valene Kane, Shazad Latif and Christine Adams.

Criterion in July 2021: DEEP COVER, WORKING GIRLS, MIRROR and More

Bill Duke's Deep Cover, Lizzie Borden's Working Girls, and Andrei Tarkovsky's Mirror lead the class of July 2010 from the Criterion Collection. In keeping with the season, Jacques Deray's La piscine is also on the release slate, along with Howard...

Busan 2020 Review: In THREE, Soviet Rule Made Monsters Of Everyone

A police intern becomes the lead investigator in one of the most gruesome and notorious murder cases in modern history, in Ruslan Pak's bleak and introspective new thriller. Inspired by the true story of Kazakh serial killer and cannibal Nikolai...

IRON MASK Trailer: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jackie Chan, Finally

We first heard about the sequel to Oleg Stepchenko's Russian ghost story Viy many years ago -- actually, it was early 2016 when our own Todd Brown wrote about the director's plans, noting the casting of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jackie...

Review: COMA, The Russians Are Coming to Take You Away to a New World

Rinal Mukhametov, Lyubov Aksyonova, Anton Pampushnyy and Konstantin Lavronenko star in the Russian sci-fi adventure, directed by Nikita Argunov, and now available On Demand.

COMA Trailer: Waking Up in a Weird New World

Back in May, I stumbled across a fun, trippy trailer for a movie that left me baffled yet dazzled, chiefly because I didn't know anything about the movie, really. Now comes official word, via an official statement, that Dark Sky...

Review: WAR AND PEACE Blasts Lavishly as Criterion Blu-ray Set

Director Sergei Bondarchuk's seven-hour Leo Tolstoy adaptation aims to put Hollywood's Audrey Hepburn version to shame.

Now on VOD: WHY DON'T YOU JUST DIE!, Bloody, Delightfully Devious Fun

Aleksandr Kuznetsov, Vitaliy Khaev and Evgeniya Kregzhde star in director Kirill Sokolov's wild Russian rollercoaster of a movie.

Russian INVASION Trailer: The End Is Near

Fedor Bondarchuk's Attraction (2017) follows what happens after a ship from outer space crash lands on Earth. His sequel, Invasion, evidently spells doom for mankind. Back in 2005, Bondarchuk made a big splash with 9th Company, which I remember as...

SPUTNIK: Fabulously Creepy Trailer For Egor Abramenko's SciFi Horror Delights

Hands up, everyone who delights in the squirming unease delivered by Ridley Scott's iconic scifi horror Alien. That's pretty much all of us, yeah? And while I hesitate to make assumptions I'm quite certain that Russian director Egor Abramenko's hand...

Now Streaming: BETTER THAN US, In Russia, the Future Does Not Look Bright

Kirill Käro and Paulina Andreeva star in the Russian sci-fi series.

Karlovy Vary 2018 Review: Heartfelt Coming-of-Age JUMPMAN Collides With Political Criticism of Contemporary Russia

Russian filmmaker Ivan I. Tverdovsky criticizes the Russian system in a coming-of-age drama with a superhero bent.

NIGHT WATCH Author Sergei Lukianenko Returns To The Big Screen With ROUGH COPY

Russian sci fi author Sergei Lukianenko created a global phenomenon with his series of Night Watch novels, books which are not only available all around the world but also provided the basis for Timur Bekmambetov's break out international hit films...

Konstantin Khabenskiy Leads An Escape From SOBIBOR

Russian star Konstantin Khabenskiy rose to international fame through his lead roles in Timur Bekmambetov's Night Watch films - followed by a memorable support part in Bekmambetov's English debut Wanted -  and he now makes his directorial debut with the...

Hot Docs 2018 Review: THE RUSSIAN JOB Makes You Laugh on the Inside

How is this for an elevator pitch:  What if Roy Andersson directed Roger & Me? No pitch is necessary, because a collaboration between a Czech journalist, Petr Horký, and freelance photographer (and regular contributor to the New York Times) Milan...