How I Ended This Summer

Russian Federation 2010, 124 minutes
Dir. Aleksey Popogrebskiy
In Russian with English subtitles
Rating: [M]
Genres: Foreign Cinema, Suspense/Crime / Adventure

Feat. Grigoriy Dobrygin, Sergey Puskepalis

“At once a gripping narrative, a resonant essay on human fallibility and a magnificent adventure.”~Jonathan Romney, Sight & Sound

Aroview: Two Russian meteorologists isolated at polar station on the Arctic fringes put each other in jeopardy in this tense, slow-burn adventure.

An eye-opener into working life at the world's margin, this meditates on the love/hate relationship between the jaded veteran and naive apprentice before the grave isolation begins to takes its toll on rational thinking. Though not completely watertight in terms of narrative logic, this has some magnificent landscape imagery, thrillingly utilized in the film's climactic half.

NZ International Film Festival 2010