The Russian film Izgnanie was shown in the U.S. with the title "Banishment." It was directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev.
The movie stars Konstantin Lavronenko as Alexander and Aleksandr Baluev as his brother, Mark. Maria Bonnevie portrays Vera, Aleksander's beautiful wife. (Although her name sounds French, Bonnevie is Norwegian-Swedish. I don't know whether she speaks Russian, or whether her voice was dubbed.)
The film starts and ends with an automobile racing along country roads and then into the city. These almost identical scenes frame a fascinating, complex narrative.
I think the title, accurately translated as Banishment, is misleading. (Well, at least it's misleading in English.) To me, the title implies someone being forced to leave one location and go to another. It's true that Alexander and Vera leave the city and go to a rural area, where they have a home. It's not a dacha--it's an old farmhouse inherited from Alexander's father. Still, they're not forced to go.
After they arrive in the farmhouse, we get hints that something's not right in their lives, but we don't know what it is. We get a clue that the brothers may be criminals, but we never learn just what they do that is illegal.
At first, Vera appears to be an ideal wife and mother, but the situation is much more complex than that.
This is a long movie, but it's never boring. Director Zvyagintsev likes to hold scenes after the main action has taken place. In this context, it's very effective. He also knows how to direct his actors, especially the three leads. Their acting is outstanding.
We saw this movie in 35mm at Rochester's superb Dryden Theatre, at the George Eastman Museum. The Dryden showed three films by Zvyagintsev on consecutive Wednesdays. My compliments to the Dryden for sustaining this high level of programming.
The movie will work better on the large screen, but it's good enough to be sought out and seen on the small screen. The film has an excellent IMDb rating of 7.7. I think it's even better than that.
The movie stars Konstantin Lavronenko as Alexander and Aleksandr Baluev as his brother, Mark. Maria Bonnevie portrays Vera, Aleksander's beautiful wife. (Although her name sounds French, Bonnevie is Norwegian-Swedish. I don't know whether she speaks Russian, or whether her voice was dubbed.)
The film starts and ends with an automobile racing along country roads and then into the city. These almost identical scenes frame a fascinating, complex narrative.
I think the title, accurately translated as Banishment, is misleading. (Well, at least it's misleading in English.) To me, the title implies someone being forced to leave one location and go to another. It's true that Alexander and Vera leave the city and go to a rural area, where they have a home. It's not a dacha--it's an old farmhouse inherited from Alexander's father. Still, they're not forced to go.
After they arrive in the farmhouse, we get hints that something's not right in their lives, but we don't know what it is. We get a clue that the brothers may be criminals, but we never learn just what they do that is illegal.
At first, Vera appears to be an ideal wife and mother, but the situation is much more complex than that.
This is a long movie, but it's never boring. Director Zvyagintsev likes to hold scenes after the main action has taken place. In this context, it's very effective. He also knows how to direct his actors, especially the three leads. Their acting is outstanding.
We saw this movie in 35mm at Rochester's superb Dryden Theatre, at the George Eastman Museum. The Dryden showed three films by Zvyagintsev on consecutive Wednesdays. My compliments to the Dryden for sustaining this high level of programming.
The movie will work better on the large screen, but it's good enough to be sought out and seen on the small screen. The film has an excellent IMDb rating of 7.7. I think it's even better than that.