The Ascent

Ratings & Reviews

Aardsy

Harrowing.

Masoud Einabadi

3.5

Emil Kurjak

orcozio che bombetta

Guillermo Padilla

How to recognize a masterpiece ?. No doubt the Russian filmmakers achieved the expertise of taking us through powerful images to the most recondite places of the human being. The light in the middle of the war: through a look. A strict and poetic use of cinema using and channeling the full force of cinematographic language.

C.

Movie with a damn spine

Fabio Osvaldo Carta

8.5/10

film_frame

What is it to be facing death? How as conscious animals do we face our ultimate end? The film seemingly creates a black/white world by utilizing the hero trope but Shepitko's metaphysical exploration of humanity showcases how we exist in a gray world. Elemental and peerless. She truly came before her time.

Lynch/Fellini

One of the most vicious portrayal of violence and the effects of war I have seen yet.

Mtume Gant

I saw someone accuse this film of hero porn, suggest if it was Hollywood we would turn our nose at it. The funniest shit is in Hollywood never would these characters exist in this fashion, the "hero" (I guess he was) die without some kind of Braveheart like triumph and the traitor languish in some kind of Chekhovian purgatory as its end. Its SO Russian. I respect the capture of the contradictions of ones "ethics"

Joel Shelton

A mesmerizing, intense, and physically driven piece of war cinema with an atmospheric soundtrack just as harsh as the unrelenting landscape the characters suffer through. People often compare this film to the work of Tarkovsky, while there are similarities, I would say it's more of a precursor to the work of Béla Tarr with how Shepitko utilizes a more contemplative approach to capture austere and bleak imagery.

Jdsarmientoburgos

Larisa Shepitko was the wife of Elem Klimov, director of Come and See. And with The Ascent you can tell that they were a match made in hell. The Ascent was a pure maddening, soul crushing, war film that leaves the audience in complete despair.

Jugu Abraham

An important film. But pales in comparison to the parallel Hungarian masterpiece: Zoltan Fabri's "The Fifth Seal" (1976). I suspect director Shepitko had seen that film, as it had won top honours at the Moscow film festival a year before she made this film.

Wee Hunk

A very seductive film. Hero porn works this way. Let us NOT praise heroes and martyrs. "[We] perpetuate war by exalting its sacrifices." "We shall never end wars by blaming it on ministers and generals or warmongering imperialists. It's the rest of us who build statues to those generals, and name boulevards after those ministers. The rest of us who make heroes of our dead and shrines of our battlefields."

pomegranate

Sotnikov's like prince Myshkin from 'Idiot'. and music by A. Schnittke is brilliant.

ShawnD

Movies like The Ascent are why I subscribe to Mubi and Filmstruck. I'd never heard of the film, the director or any of the actors. But, I couldn't take my eyes off this movie. It's both searing and sublime, beautiful and ugly. In short, a rare cinematic accomplishment.

pirri

4,5

Ahmed Abdel Wahhab Hussien

After a very compelling start, the film spent a full hour begging for empathy. Great acting only by Boris Plotnikov (the one who looks like Simon Pegg)

Joel

Starting slow and seemingly straight-forward the final act moves into an atmospheric depth that lingers. The soundtrack echoes the cinematography. A difficult and beautiful journey into darkness.

HSBilly

haunting, very very haunting.

Dignan

Good piece on cowardice.

Jake.Durston

"So then, to the grave - to feed the worms. Right?"

Halil Küçükyıldız

One of the most five qualified film i've ever seen. Like a hidden treasure. Most important aspect of this film is being filmed by a woman director. The film reflects the feeling about the human, death and war. Those who love cinema art must watch this magnificent film.

saitosouta

Power of his eyes. Just excellent.

ASHES IN THE HOURGLASS

How much more pretentious and kitsch can you get than a retelling of Jesus Christ set in WW2 where the Nazis swap the Romans? If this was made in Hollywood, it would have been laughed at, but because it's made in Mother Russia and sort of resembles a Tarkovky film, its been hailed as great. Seriously, people need to get over the so-called Russian Soul bullshit. The performances and small moments redeem it slightly.