Retrospective Program - V. Kossakovsky  

“You shouldn’t film us. We’re just common people.” Thus begins a mesmerising, tragic, and raucous portrait of a Russian farm family. Beautifully shot in vintage black and white, The Belovs tells the story of twice-widowed Anna Belova who lives with her bother Mikhail. Sometimes two other brothers, Vasily and Sergei Feodorovich, come to visit them. Their quarrels, tears, and joys all play out in front of Kossakovsky’s patient, intuitive camera, which is as likely to focus on a stray hedgehog in the road as it is on Anna’s weathered face. Tea and vodka are consumed, potatoes dug up, steam baths taken. They debate whether misery can be measured and stoically accept their tough but straightforward lives. But to view their desperation as tragic is to turn a blind eye to the flashes of tenderness and humour that abound in this film.

Awards

International Documentary Festival Amsterdam, 1993 – Joris Ivens Award, Public‘s Choice Award
International Documentary Film Festival Nyon, 1993 – FIPRESCI Prize, Ecumenical Jury Prize, Public‘s Choice Award
Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Films, 1993 – Public‘s Choice Award
International Film Festival Message to Man, St. Petersburg, 1993 – Golden Centaur, Critics Prize