DIRECTOR: Andrey Zvyagintsev
PRODUCERS: Alexander Rodnyansky, Sergey Melkumov
PRODUCTION CO: Non Stop Production
SCREENPLAY: Oleg Negin, Andrey Zvyagintsev
PHOTOGRAPHY: Mikhail Krichman
EDITOR: Anna Mass
MUSIC: Philip Glass
WITH: Alexey Serebryakob (Kolya), Elena Lyadova (Lilya), Vladimir Vdovitchenko (Dmitriy), Roman Madyanov (Vadim Cheleviat), Anna Ukolova (Anzhela), Alexey Rozin (Pasha), Sergey Pokhodaev (Romka)

FESTIVALS: Cannes 2014
AWARDS: Best Foreign Language Film, Golden Globes 2015, Best Film, London 2015

REVIEWS

“It’s a contemporary Russian tale, set on the shores of the Barents Sea, about the unholy powers of the state and the church bearing down on one man, Kolia (Alexey Serebryakov) and his family, after he dares to challenge an attempt by the local mayor, Vadim (Roman Maydanov), to take his home from him. The film’s title borrows from that of political philosopher Thomas Hobbes’s greatest work and helps itself to his view that life would be ‘nasty, brutish and short’ without good government and an organised society. It’s a tragedy with a hint of black comedy that moves at its own, sometimes surprising, pace and rhythm, and it lands a bruising punch on modern Russia… Like Elena before it, this is a parable, but it’s a grander affair unafraid to wander down some unusual paths with all the detail and density of a great novel.”

— David Calhoun, Time Out

“It’s a film of ferocious political rage, railing against Russia’s corrupt masters, but it’s also mysterious and poetic, eventually opening out to metaphysical perspectives. And while it’s deeply contemplative, its narrative fairly barrels along. For a killer combination of energy, imagination and visionary cinematic power, Leviathan fairly lives up to its name.”

— Jonathan Romney, The Guardian

FILM SOCIETY SCREENINGS

Wellington     
Monday, 2 May, 6.15pm

Tauranga   
Thursday, 19 May, 6.30pm

Palmerston North     
Wednesday, 8 June, 6.00pm

Dunedin   
Wednesday, 21 December, 7.30pm

WORLD CINEMA selection >>