untitled design

Fiction film about the War in Ukraine opens in Brazil

Portraying in cinema a story that is still being written does not usually create the best films, but Maryna Er Gorbach does not make any value judgments in their direction.

On the contrary, it just positions itself in the center of “Klondike – The War in Ukraine” the trigger for a conflict that escalated over almost ten years.

There are two genres that complement each other in this work: family drama and war film.

Inside a house, whose living room wall is destroyed by a bomb in the first few minutes of the film, live Inka (Oksana Cherkashyna) and Tolik (Sergey Shadrin). As they are expecting their first child, they find themselves in the midst of conflict between pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian army.

In the beginning, the presence of this war is reflected in some daily annoyances, such as having to give up the family car for a few hours to the separatists. However, when an air disaster happens on site, the situation changes.

The director based the film on the July 2014 event, when a Malaysia Airlines flight was shot down by pro-Russian separatists in the Donbass region, killing 298 people.

“It took years of investigation to find the culprits,” says director Maryna Er. “And the subject disappeared from the media quickly, which was scary for me, so I decided to tell this story my way.”

Even a non-documentary feature film can serve as a historical document. For Miguel Chaia, professor at PUC and political scientist, cinema is a form of participation and understanding of reality, with War being one of the biggest themes in audiovisual, as it affects everyone; who produces the film and who watches it.

“What is the great tragic event understood in sociability, in the functioning and in the organization of a society? It’s the war. It is permanent,” she says.

Conflicts escalate, but the essence of war does not change. According to the professor, “Klondike” does not lose strength when portraying a situation that is still in progress because the film is yet another way of getting in touch with the subject, making it more enlightening.

“Even though the characters are fictional, we’re seeing a re-enactment of the story.”

And Maryna made a point of showing it, but reflecting on it at the same time. According to the director, to make an anti-war film, it is necessary to show the war in some way. The director, however, left aside the classic aesthetic of conflicts: explosions at every moment, heroic soldiers’ journeys, pools of blood… She chose the path of non-violence and minimalism.

“I wanted to bring an immersive experience of the war through camera movements and photography”, he says, “when I don’t create an exhibition environment, I let the spectator’s imagination flow, I believe it’s better than showing absolutely everything”.

At times, she gets emotional during the interview. She says that what the world sees now, the Ukrainians already predicted eight years ago.

“This film is my creation against war and violence, and I hope it resonates with those who watch it,” he says.

feminine look

The main character of the film is Irka, who resists, as much as possible, to see the horrors of war. As if it were a small crack, Irka insists to her husband that the living room wall be fixed after a bomb detonates the house, for example.

When milking his cow, he caresses her and asks if she was frightened by the noise. She doesn’t understand, or ignores, why her car is being used by separatists. Irka tries her best to dissociate herself from reality, until, with no escape, she is directly affected by it.

“I see a lot of ‘Irkas’ around, it’s the classic Ukrainian woman”, says the director. “They are resilient women, willing to protect their families and their own lives.”

Irka is a kind, conciliatory character whose main role is to show how war, caused by men, is always stupid.

Maryna compares Irka to Ukraine itself. According to the director, an independent country, with the creation of its own culture, but whose history is constantly interrupted by third parties.

At the end of the film, Maryna dedicates it to women, but not before showing the last and most moving scene. In war, destruction is also a creation.

Source: CNN Brasil

You may also like

Get the latest

Stay Informed: Get the Latest Updates and Insights

 

Most popular