Aleksey UCHITEL
Алексей УЧИТЕЛЬ
Alekseï OUTCHITEL
Russia / Bulgaria, 2008, 80mn 
Colour, fiction
The Captive
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Пленный

 

 Captif

 Plennyy

Other titles : Prisonnier
 
Directed by : Aleksey UCHITEL (Алексей УЧИТЕЛЬ)
Writing credits : Timofei DEKIN (Тимофей ДЕКИН), Vladimir MAKANIN (Владимир МАКАНИН)
 
Cast
Vyacheslav KRIKUNOV (Вячеслав КРИКУНОВ) ...Roubakhine
Pyotr LOGATSHEV (Пётр ЛОГАЧЕВ) ...Vovka
Irakli MSKHALAIA (Ираклий МСХАЛАЯ) ...Djamal
Yulia PERESILD (Юлия ПЕРЕСИЛЬД) ...Nastia
 
Cinematography : Yuri KLIMENKO (Юрий КЛИМЕНКО)
Production design : Andrey VASIN (Андрей ВАСИН)
Music : Kirill VASILENKO (Кирилл ВАСИЛЕНКО)
Sound : Kirill VASILENKO (Кирилл ВАСИЛЕНКО)
Produced by : Aleksey UCHITEL (Алексей УЧИТЕЛЬ)
 
Language russe
Site : IMDb

Awards :
Best directing Festival ''Cinema and literature'', Gatchina (Russia), 2009
First prize FilmFestival Cottbus - Festival of East European Cinema, Cottbus (Germany), 2008
Best Cinematography Yuri KLIMENKO , Award "White Elephant", Moscow (Russia), 2008
Best directing Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, Karlovy Vary (Czech Republic), 2008

Plot synopsis
A convoy of Russian soldiers finds itself trapped in the mountainous Chechen landscape, lost in unfamiliar hostile territory. All around them explosions and gunfire from the unseen enemy shatter the stifling air. The commander of the garrison sends out the seasoned Rubakhin and the young rifleman Vovka to take captive a local who knows the mountain trails and could lead the men to safety. After a brief exchange of fire, the two men seize a young wounded Chechen who, although he doesn’t speak Russian, seems to have understood his task. On this scorching summer’s day, the incongruous threesome have to make their way through the difficult terrain, forcing all of them to show mutual consideration and willingness. However, the proximity of the Chechen settlements soon destroys the intimacy that has developed between the men, and the captive has to pay a terrible price for his role as their passport to safety. His captors will not escape from the incident unscathed, either… The film illustrates the absurdity of a single day in a horrific and senseless war – a war being fought without anyone understanding its original causes and motivation.
Source : www.kviff.com
 

Commentaries and bibliography
Александр Попов. От декаданса к коммерческому кино: творческий путь Алексея Учителя [A propos de l'oeuvre du réalisateur Aleksei Outchitel], Александр ПОПОВ, Kinopressa, 2023
Aleksei Uchitel : The Captive (Plennyi, 2008), Joe ANDREW, kinokultura.com, 2009
Кавказ как предчувствие, Andrey PLAKHOV, seance.ru, 2009
 

Selected in the following festivals or events :
- War in contemporary Russian cinema, kinoglaz.fr (France), 2023
- Mostra Internazionale del Nuovo Cinema, Pesaro (Italy), 2010
- Sofia International Film Festival, Sofia (Bulgaria), 2009
- Helsinki International Film Festival, Helsinki (Finland), 2009
- Europe XXL / Midi-Midi Moscou, Lille (France), 2009
- Europe around Europe, Paris (France), 2009
- Strasbourg two weeks of Russian cinema, Strasbourg (France), 2009
- Sputnik nad Polska, Warsaw (Poland), 2009
- Festival ''Cinema and literature'', Gatchina (Russia), 2009
- Festival "Vivat Kino Rossii", St Petersburg (Russia), 2009
- International Film Festival Tarkovski, Ivanovo (Russia), 2009
- Göteborg International Film Festival, Göteborg (Sweden), 2009
- Tiburon International Film Festival, Tiburon (USA), 2009
- Russian film symposium. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh (USA), 2009
- Seattle International Film Festival : SIFF, Seattle (USA), 2009
- Clevelant International Film Festival, Cleveland (USA), 2009
- Film Festival Ghent, Ghent (Belgium), 2008
- Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, Karlovy Vary (Czech Republic), 2008
- Russian Film Week in Paris : Regards de Russie, Paris (France), 2008
- Honfleur Russian Film Festival, Honfleur (France), 2008
- FilmFestival Cottbus - Festival of East European Cinema, Cottbus (Germany), 2008
- Russische Filmwoche in Berlin, Berlin (Germany), 2008
- Russian Film Festival, Riga (Latvia), 2008
- Warsaw Film Festival, Warsaw (Poland), 2008
- Award "White Elephant", Moscow (Russia), 2008
- International Human Rights Film Festival, Moscow (Russia), 2008
- "Vyborg" Russian Film Festival (formerly ''A Window to Europe''), Vyborg (Russia), 2008
- Open Russian Film Festival Kinotavr, Sochi (Russia), 2008
- "NIKA" Prizes, Moscow (Russia), 2008
- International Film Festival Bratislava, Brastislava (Slovakia), 2008
- The Times BFI London Film Festival, London (United Kingdom), 2008
- Russian Film Week in New York, New York (USA), 2008

Photos and videos