THE ANTIQUE

After her resounding debut with House of Others (Karlovy Vary award winner), director Rusudan Glurjidze sheds light on the brutal, illegal 2006 mass deportation of Georgians orchestrated by Putin’s regime. Focussing less on political commentary, the film delves into the human condition through two tales of loneliness portrayed by Salome Demuria – selected as a European Shooting Star for her remarkable performance – and Sergey Dreyden, who ironically played a guardian of his country’s history in Sokurov’s Russian Ark. Glurjidze’s steady pulse in confronting the cruel acts and her compassionate look at displacement are enhanced by the evocative cinematography of Gorka Gómez Andreu (Irati), which captures the frozen streets and sombre interiors of Saint Petersburg in this parable that leaves no one indifferent.