Silent Souls

Ovsyanki

Russia

2010

75 Min

Color

2.35:1

Russian

Currently 3.3/5 Stars.
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CAST Yuliya Aug, Igor Sergeyev, Viktor Sukhorukov, Yuriy Tsurilo

Venice (Competition): FIPRESCI Prize, Best Cinematography, New York, Toronto (Contemporary World Cinema), London (Cinema Europa), Abu Dhabi (Narrative Competition), São Paulo (International Perspective), Mar del Plata (International Competition): Best Director, Best Screenplay, Rotterdam (Spectrum), CPH PIX (It Came from the East), San Francisco (World Cinema), Ghent (Competition), Melbourne (International Panorama)

Synopsis

The rites and rituals of the Merja people—an ethnic minority of Finno-Urgric extraction originally from the Volga region of Russia—form the backbone of this lyrical, sensual and dreamlike film about love and loss. After his beloved wife Tanja dies, pulp factory CEO Miron calls on his best friend Aist to help him with his final goodbye. With water as a key element, director Aleksei Fedorchenko beautifully weaves the myths and traditions of this vanishing culture into his poetic film. The result is a melancholy and mystical journey following the complex and twisting currents of the human heart. –SFFS

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asuraf

22Dec11

Purely artistic, poetic Russian mood piece, about the dying rituals of a practically forgotten small community on Lake Nero. Shot in floating long takes, told in the barest of minimalist voice over and flashbacks, the film looks and feels like the last memory of a cold, small, yet profound existence.

profoblivion

25Oct11

Fedorchenko explores the disappearing Merjan culture of Russia, its customs and burial rituals. Fascinating and beautifully executed, except for an ending that seems more like an afterthought and overshadows everything that came before. Still worth the watch.

Jason Callen

18Sep11

Getting way more attention than it deserves. It's got some pretty pictures but it's otherwise a complete mess. J. Hoberman is out of his skull.

Matthew_Lucas

3Sep11

Haunting Russian drama about 2 men bound by the same woman, on a journey to give her a proper burial. Nods to Tarkovsky, lost hopes, and faded dreams converge in this eerily effective study on grief. Weak ending aside, it feels remarkably lived in - a melancholy testament to humanity's quest for immortality.