How sad is this?

A Major Disappointment

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Brilliant film that discretely depicts the hypocrisy and nonsense of the church and faith, corruption and power inequality. The ones in power always win in the courts. This film is one of the few films I've watched lately that made me feel amazed by it's end.

Andrey Zvyagintsev's movie Leviathan (2014) is inspired by a true story that took place in the USA, the director however decided to shoot the movie in Russian in order to depict the conditions of Russians under a corrupt bureaucratic oligarchy. The movie suggests that the conditions of living under a corrupt leadership system isn't unique to one Nation and hence Leviathan intends to be a universal parable about a rigged and corrupt capitalist political system in our modern contemporary society.The title of the movie refers to Thomas Hobbes seminal work Leviathan, a political philosophy work about the nature of liberty and the nation-state. Hobbes argue in his work that there is a need for a sovereign power that should rule instead of humanity being in a state of nature. Since Human beings are political animals and that antagonism is inherent in them, then for stability and avoidance of anarchy they need to surrender their powers and right to a sovereign institution. As its evident in the movie, Hobbes didn't anticipated that the sovereign will be brutal and corrupt to this extent. Modernity's Sovereign institution- the nation state- is run by 'figures' that dwell in a state of Nature. The protagonist Kolya is a hotheaded and rude car mechanic. He lives with his second wife Lilya and a teenage son named Roma from his first marriage.Lilya is a depressed and trouble young beautiful woman and Roma loathe her totally. Lilya works in a fish factory where she cleans fish. This simple family living in a small town in the Barents Sea coast are haunted by the town mayor who is an ever drunk and corrupt. Vadim, the town mayor wants to evict the Kolyas from their land by a court order, and it is evident that the court is under Vadim's thumb. Dmitri, as sophisticated handsome lawyer from Moscow comes to help his former friend Kolya. The court rules against the Kolyas and as they report a trespassing case against the mayor, Kolya is arrested. While in jail Lilya and Dmitri have an impromptu sex in hotel and this leads to a crisis in the Kolya family. Kolya's calamities lead to catastrophes, Lilya commits suicide after he threatened her after her relationship with Dmitri. He is finally arrested and jailed. Roma the teenage boy is taken by a family friend. Finally we come to learn that Kolya's jailing was planned by the town mayor who demolishes their house and take the land. Leviathan is a tragic drama that beautifully pulls its viewers to contemplate the subjects of morality and justice in our modern present day. Kolya is a modern day Job- the figure from the old testament fable- who endures the brutality and trials of living under a corrupt judicial and political oligarchy. Kolya's world just like ours is a world governed by arrogant corrupt politician, smart lawyers and corrupt priests. A priest who looks like a character from Dostoyevski films advise Kolya to endure his trials and be patient like Job and submit his affairs to God. Kolya doesn't heed this advice and ends up being the bleached whale – Leviathan-that we see in the dried sea basins and the movie hence evokes both Hobbes Political tract and the old testament's Job.Parliamentary representative democracy failed. The working class is under the gaze of a corrupt politician and a bent judicial system. Modern democracy is hijacked by crony politicians who employ the state institutions to control dissenting voices from the public, Kolya is finally behind bars as we have seen. The judicial system and the prison are used as a control 'mechanism'. The church expects and instills into the public the conformity the state wants. Modernity with all its facets and institutions turned out to benefit the few ruling elites and the subjects of modernity virtually live in a controlled society. Leviathan is a critique of the social contract theory that emancipated an absolute sovereign power. Foundational principles like justice, equality and right to own property are no longer sustainable under a modern sovereign power without complying with their rules and needs, and those who dissent are then put under the mercy of a corrupt justice and emergency laws. The state, the Judiciary, the prisons and the church/mosque all cooperate the elites to consolidate power in their hands.

Another overrated 'Award' winner. Seems the bleaker they are the higher the likelihood of being hailed!. Plankton rules, a long term IMDb reviewer sums it up pretty well (along with others, see approx 3 - 5 down on page two). I can see this being a good 50min TV drama - the story is potent enough but the treatment is dull, and moves along in two speeds: dead slow and stop.Imagery is the strongest feature - striking cinematography by Mikhail Krichman, capturing some dramatically haunting locations on the Russian coast - these are set to a moody selection of music written by Philip Glass. Then enter the characters of the piece, eternally drunk - to the point of rendering themselves hopeless, endlessly swearing or attempting to cheat each other and so on. Expecting an audience to spend this much time with these folk is a very big ask. Here I have to agree with the Russian Minister of Culture - who put money into this production - then somewhat understandably disowned the film. It rightly tells the story of shocking endemic corruption by persons in high places (all administered by their paid thugs) and the terrible effects this imposes on the Russian every-man - but, in the process it gradually looses all impact by taking way too long to deliver its message. We have seen how well Russian film makers can execute an exemplary product - just a year before (2013) they gave us the superb "Gagarin" (coming in 30min under the run-time of Leviathan). Leviathan's director and writer might have done well to take a leaf from this fine film and trimmed much of the heavy-handed, turgid approach given to their subject. It's not entirely made clear if the Orthodox church is being accused of being highly complicit in this corruption or is perhaps simply benefiting thorough the hypocrisy of officials who are attempting to 'buy their way to heaven'. The final sermon, delivered in full, in the presence of these hypocritical civil servants, perfectly puts the blame squarely on their greedy heads. Then again, it seems more likely this is the filmmakers own political attempts at putting the church down. Ultimately this movie is a huge let down. Some will, some won't, I certainly didn't....

Unforgiving, stark landscape of Northern Russia. Hard lives, tough people. Andrei Zvyagintsev, author of few masterpieces (" Elena", above the others comes to mind ),is telling a story of the corrupt system and helpless individual that stands in its way. It is a very taxing job for a viewer to follow the plight of Kolya and his family. The director shows no mercy piling up image after image, till the full picture of utter despair emerges in the end. This is not a black and white propaganda piece. There are no angels and perfect heroes in this world. Even the wronged and victimized fall short, drowning their sorrows in gallons of vodka. But, then if these were our lives what other option would be available? Brave, unflinching portrayal of not just Putin Russia, but of any and every society in which corruption seems to be as natural as the air we breed.