This was the second film I've seen by this director. Leviathan caused an uproar in Russia when it was released. It was not allowed to be shown in wide release in Russia because it was so critical of Russian government. So, I was very interested to see the film that was causing such an uproar. And true to the gossip surrounding the film it was a depressing film about the reality facing Russians. The hypocrisy was deep. Corrupt government officials receiving the benediction of Orthodox priests while possibly framing a man for the murder of his wife.
The film begins with a court trial of a man who is being legally removed from his house by the mayor of a Russian city. The motives for the removal seem unjustified and vague. The man being removed speculates that the mayor wants to build a palace where his house stands. He hires a lawyer and it seems like the system is working. Yet, a big twist comes in. The lawyer is sleeping with the man's wife. So he is morally compromised. The mayor takes him hostage and threatens to kill him. In a scene reminiscent of Sopranos the mayor takes the lawyer to be executed, but spares him. The lawyer returns to Moscow fearing for his life. I got the sense that this was not something uncommon in Putin's Russia. This film only shows the deep corruption that pervades Russia and the social discord it causes.
If the mayor had not wanted this man's house the lawyer would have never come to the city and nothing would have ever happened. The director is making a statement about the corruption and hypocrisy that are deeply ingrained in Russia. I understand why this film caused such an uproar in Putin's Russia. I can only imagine that problems like the ones depicted in Leviathan are widespread. Recently the murder of an opposition figure brings to light the violence that is such a part of Russian politics.
This film is a testament to how Russia is. Was it better under the Communists? Was there less corruption and murder? Those are questions that this film brings up. Those are questions the Putin regime seeks to answer with proclamations that the fall of the Soviet Union was the greatest disaster of the 20th century. It's recent seizure of Crimea and support of separatists in Eastern Ukraine are clear displays that Putin wants to lead Russia to renewed international prominence. Yet that requires further questions, how many dead bodies must there be before Russia seeks to change itself? How much corruption can be tolerated until there is a need for renewal? How long will Putin last?
Perhaps I'm overestimating the ideas this film evokes. Yet it is a clear portrayal of Russia. It's characters reveal the lives of Russians and the problems they face. I couldn't help noticing how much everyone drank. I also noticed how the Orthodox priest was in alliance with the gangster mayor. This is a far cry from the Stalinist Soviet Union which expunged Russia of religion. The character of the man who was removed from his home was particularly interesting. He drank and smoked and stated his opinion frankly. In the end he was imprisoned for the murder of his wife. The trial was not shown so I thought he may have been convicted under false pretenses. By that time I felt a deep sympathy for his character. I thought the director or writer developed his character arc very well.
Yet it was the theme of the house being taken away from him that stood out to me. At the end of the film the house is destroyed. I suppose the house could be a symbol of Russian individual rights. In the age of Putin Russians have little say against a regime that uses gangsterism and intimidation to get what it wants.
A great film from a great director. It is too bad it didn't win the Oscar for best foreign film.
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