Caucasian Roulette

Colour, 35 mm
Russia, 2002, 83 min
Section: East of the West

Synopsis

Another attempt to express the absurdity of the Chechen War. The simple plot, which unfolds in a train’s mail car, is infused with the atmosphere of omnipresent social and moral devastation. Raised in a children’s home, Anna married a Chechen out of love. The two of them are snipers willing to shoot her fellow countrymen for dollars. Earlier she sent her newborn child off to Russia; now she is fleeing there to escape persecution. On the train she meets Marie whose son is in Chechen captivity; she suspects that Marie will try to force her to return in exchange for her son’s liberation. The cruelty of this confrontation, its fear and uncertainty are reflected in an unmerciful psychological struggle in which each defends her own interests. A greedy and cynical conductor is another player in this game, and he callously takes advantage of his stowaways’ situation. The constant external threat aggravates the tense emotionality and asperity of the triad’s incompatibility. Life and death are here interrelated, good is conditioned by evil, and the film heads towards a tragic climax.

About the director

Fyodor Popov graduated in production from Moscow’s VGIK film school (1979), then studied direction under Sergei Solovyov and Valery Rubinchik. He gradated with the feature-length documentary Geydar Alyev (Gejdar Alijev, 1998). He has worked with a number of important directors (Andrei Konchalovsky, Gleb Panfilov, Sergei Solovyov, Nikolay Dostal) and now produces features and television movies. He also produced his debut Caucasian Roulette (2002). He is currently director of Krug Film Studios.