Aleksey UCHITEL Алексей УЧИТЕЛЬ Alekseï OUTCHITEL   Russia / Bulgaria, 2008, full length film  Colour, fiction

The Captive ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ Пленный    Captif  Plennyy

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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

 

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Commentaries and bibliography

Aleksei Uchitel : The Captive (Plennyi, 2008), Joe ANDREW, kinokultura.com, 2009

 

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Selected in the following festivals :

- 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

- Russian film symposium. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh (USA), 2009

- Seattle International Film Festival : SIFF, Seattle (USA), 2009

- Clevelant International Film Festival, Cleveland (USA), 2009

- Tiburon International Film Festival, Tiburon (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

- Russische Filmwoche in Berlin, Berlin (Germany), 2008

- FilmFestival Cottbus - Festival of East European Cinema, Cottbus (Germany), 2008

- Russian Film Festival, Riga (Latvia), 2008

- Warsaw Film Festival, Warsaw (Poland), 2008

- Window to Europe Film Festival, Vyborg, Vyborg (Russia), 2008

- Open Russian Film Festival Kinotavr, Sochi (Russia), 2008

- "NIKA" Prizes, Moscow (Russia), 2008

- Annual award of the Guild of Historians of Cinema and Film Critics, Moscow (Russia), 2008

- International Human Rights Film Festival, 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

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