2021 ( Finland | Russia | Estonia | Germany ) ( Drama, Romance )
( Russian and Finnish with English subtitles )
Starring: Yuriy Borisov, Seidi Haarla, Valeriy Nikolaev
Director: Juho Kuosmanen
A long train ride from Moscow to Murmansk becomes a journey of unexpected connection in Juho Kuosmanen’s character-driven drama. Finnish archaeology student Laura (Seidi Haarla) finds herself travelling solo. Unfortunately for Laura, she turns out to be anything but alone when rough and ready miner Lyokha (Yuriy Borisov) turns up to share a sleeping car. Laura and Ljoha are chalk and cheese, almost caricatured representatives of their respective nations. He is gruff, often drunk and aggressively impolite, However, as the journey towards the Arctic ice continues, a thaw begins to occur, and Laura starts to suspect that Lyokha’s masculine bravado is only skin deep.
Beautifully believable performances from Haarla and Borisov add emotional weight to the film’s central theme of overcoming otherness and finding common ground across personal, cultural and geographical borders. It could be a balm for the soul in these tumultuous times.
(1hr 47min)