I have an interest in Russia, past and present and have developed a certain patience with their "art" films which tend to be short on narrative and long on stills of their subjects and their background. I've noticed also in Russian contemporary films an emphasis on orphanhood or -- at best -- a single and possibly inadequate parent. Here father, intermittently a heavy drinker, and his son of around twelve travel across rural Russia towards Crimea. As they do so you see how neglected rural Russia is after the Soviet period when there were collective farms and small industries in the towns. Everything looks so dilapidated and in need of an injection of money. Not a film o watch when you are downhearted, but one which provides you with real insights into aspects of life in contemporary Russia.
A young boy observes the disappointing disintegration of his now homeless father as they hike and hitch rides together towards a destination the father calls Koktebel on the Crimean coast. This flawed and tarnished hero used to work on big Soviet engineering projects but is now unemployed and having trouble convincing his young son that he is worth sticking with. I would put this 5 star Russian film with a trio of equally beautifully observed Soviet films I previously reviewed about the travails of childhood
An interesting road movie for those interested in contemporary Russia, a little sad though.