On a remote island weather station with 2 isolated Russians – one older, one younger – not getting on.
Its boiled walrus for dinner.
Not the most riveting first 15 minutes. Setting of scene: scene is desolate, windswept, barren. Creating of mood: mood is solitary, lonely, disconnected. Pace is pedestrian. Talk is minimal. Drama is minimal.
Young guy is larking about outside. Wears headphones, earstud. Needs some action. Plays computer games. Seems out of place.
Older guy is out fishing for Arctic trout in boat. This is his place. Gruff meets rough.
Film takes a slow time to turn, to warm its cold bones up. Becomes viscerally involving, if not entirely engrossing; my emotional commitment stayed unhooked. Conflict between the 2 lacks interior depth; their characters too estranging – from one another, and also from me. Not enough story to get my teeth into. Not enough character complexity to get my head into. My heart stayed cold.
Dir: Aleksey Popogrebskiy, Russia
5.5/10
