Elena – Polimi International Film Festival

Directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev. With Nadezhda Markina, Yelena Lyadova, Aleksey Rozin.

RUSSIA, 2011 – runtime 109 minutes.

Original language with English subtitles – free event upon registration.

Elena and Vladimir are an older couple, they come from different backgrounds. They have met late in life and each one has children from previous marriages. A heart attack puts Vladimir in hospital, where he realizes that his remaining time is limited. A brief but somehow tender reunion with his daughter leads him to make an important decision: she will be the only heiress of his wealth. Helena’s hopes to financially help her son suddenly vanish, so she comes up with a plan to give her son and grandchildren a real chance in life.

Winner of the Un Certain Regard special jury prize at Cannes 2011.

“A deeply satisfying film”. Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

“Post-Soviet Russia in this somber, gripping film is a moral vacuum where money rules, the haves are contemptuous of the have-nots, and class resentment simmers”. Stephen Holden, New York Times