狂暴山野

Rumours of the death of easterns are not true. On the contrary. Ukrainian Jaroslav Lodygin (31) has produced a grotesque and amusing film with sharply social undertones, refreshing the formulae of the genre. Herman is forced to return from Kharkiv to this native town in Donbas in order to take over his brother’s petrol station which the cross-border mafia has its eye on. The wild fields surrounding it are a historical gateway from the East to the West – a place where different interests clash time and again. The events at the old petrol station become a model of the crazy life and social relationships in Ukraine, a witty allegory of the time when hints of the imminent Donbas war are in the air. The author presents an elegant pastiche of the legendary standoffs of the spaghetti westerns of Kaurismäki, the Coen brothers and Sergio Leone and much more with youthful exuberance and very funny moments. The film radiates good creative energy and carries a message which is very topical today – everyone should protect their wild fields. The film is based on renowned Ukrainian younger generation author Serhiy Zhadan’s award-winning novel "Voroshilovgrad". The city is now called Luhansk. Tiit Tuumalu