This
is the story of Sasha who, despite his own initial intentions, fights the local
landowners when they try and liquidate the farm he runs in Russia. They offer
him compensation and this make his girlfriend, Anna, very happy as she knows
now that they can get an apartment together in the city. His co-workers though
decided otherwise and when Sasha puts the offer to them they tell him in no
uncertain terms that they will fight to stay and farm the land. Even with
compensation they won’t have the means to make a living. Sasha then risks his
future plans and relationship in confirming his solidarity with them.
We
are presented with a few dichotomies here in the film. It’s about how the world
of modern offices, dyed blonde hair and Hyundai cars these days come up against
the world of old, wooden agricultural buildings, manual land management (i.e.
non mechanised) and basically a hand to mouth existence. In a way it’s
concerned with a theme of how the world has modernised in places and how it
hasn’t in others. There is the recognition as well that some people do not want
to take part in Westernisation and are happy with their life as it is without
relative progress.
I
like the way in the film that the actions are really allowed to speak for
themselves and that we are shown and told as well. It is made as well in a
manner not dissimilar to cinéma verité, or I suppose Kino-Pravda as it’s a
Russian film. I’m sure that on many occasions the actors have improvised and
have been given an idea of where they need to get to with their dialogue. There
are some delicious scenes when at one point the farmers are telling Sasha that
they will refuse to leave and are showing a complete sense of assertiveness in
not being afraid at all of contradicting him. It doesn’t seem long after that
though that they’re calling him the master, and insisting that he goes to the
head of the queue in the shop. It’s a film that’s rough round the edges in the
production and the acting, but it’s none the worse for that.
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