The Thaw

A film of stark contrasts: the bitter poverty of the peasants amidst the rich countryside and the simple life of luxury of a few kulaks: beatings, alcohol, a child lost in play, denunciation and murder, the beautiful yet severe changes of the seasons – and an existential contradiction between state pressure and the fragile cohesion of a village community that is inwardly torn apart. The merciless struggle demands bitter sacrifices. The modest emancipation of Anka, a single mother and heroine, offers but little consolation. (Berlinale)