Uroki garmonii
Plots(1)
Thirteen-year-old Aslan lives with his grandmother in a small Kazakh village where he attends a school with an extremely high level of crime. Although not at first entirely noticeable, the boy suffers from a personality disorder that gradually manifests itself in the untenable convergence of his strict sense of order and extreme perfectionism with the violent school environment where the rules are made by the strongest and most aggressive students. Bolat is a leader of a local gang that humiliates Aslan at the outset of the film. He and his minions then continue using violence to extort protection money from the other kids to give to their friends in jail. But the daily dose of terror eventually pushes Aslan to an act that goes beyond the established hierarchy of power. This surprisingly mature debut, featuring outstanding performances by the young leads, subtly builds up its atmosphere via a sequence of images of the boy’s daily activities. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)
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Reviews (2)
A very disturbing film about how the system actually works or doesn't work. It is to some extent about a bullied young man, but it can be seen more as a film about justice and how it is viewed by individuals who have power. Justice doesn't work, not in the social sense, but we will continue to defend it.
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About 2/3 of the film is great. It is directed with feeling for the exact degree of naturalism, lyricism and laconic hint (the syntax of the wholes and details of some scenes is simply great). The depressing atmosphere, escalating helplessness and frustrated aggression of the main character looking in vain for a harmonious center is also topped off again by a sensitive ellipse. But it is followed by a sweaty detective story, scattered and reinforced with un-artificial symbols, which completely break down the economical structure. The lessons of harmony begin somewhere near the Romanian new wave and end as forgettable lyrical dramas from XYstan. It’s too bad, but Baigazin is undoubtedly a great talent.
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Photo © Arizona Films
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