Archive

Chills from the Cold Land: Contemporary Russian Genre Films

The Sword Bearer

Philip YANKOVSKY

Russia2006 108min 35mm Color Asian Premiere

Synopsis

A Russian variation of Hollywood super hero fares. ‘Sasha,’ cursed with overwhelming power to withdraw a sword from his arm, is mentally unstable and susceptible to tearing into violence. One day, he returns to his home town in the hope to put things behind only to become a fugitive as a murderer. He nevertheless dreams about his new self by meeting a woman of destiny, ‘Katya.’ Unlike other Hollywood heroes, his traces are far from heroic ‘justice.’ The dialogue here is minimized, replaced with horrible homicidal scenes, actions, and Sasha’s agony; all of which are metaphoric possibility of Russia today. Philip YANKOVSKY has created a fantasia Sci-Fi with a blend of noir-like screen, artistic mental effects, and imbalance between CG and real actions. Previously, the director produced 2 full-length films and had developed his career as an actor. (LEE Hwa Jung)

Diretor

Philip YANKOVSKY

Son of Oleg YANKOVSKY, he starred in many films, as a director, This is his third feature film. Before Sword Bearer, he directed The State Counsellor[2005] and In Motion[2002].