oyahuasca

Wow, I can't believe that the average rating for this movie is a 4! At first I thought it was rated by closed minded mainstreamers who enjoy The Avengers or Fast and Furious, but after reading the reviews I realized that most of the bad ratings come from the people who read the original novel the movie was based on, and I can totally understand where those people come from. But as a person who has not read the book and just accidentally stumbled upon this film, it turned out to be a pleasant surprise. It was strange, surprising, sexual. It kept me tuned till the end and although the original plot may have been truncated and the details emboldened by the pace of the film, I definitely don't think it deserves a 4. As a new viewer to this story, I was left with a feeling of being entertained.

Assa is considered one of the greatest films of the post Soviet generation. The soundtrack is not very far from what we call hipster nowadays - divergence from the mainstream. There are many underground musicians that either contributed musically or artistically. Also, it focuses on a major issue that existed among the "perestroika youth". How to choose a life of honesty and civility, when corruption promises "white mountains". Who can we trust if not our government? What will be the future, what is important in a life? These are all the questions that this movie focuses on.

Assa is a film for and by the youth and by the counter culture of its time. Aside from relevant problems being raised in the movie (a rare thing of its time), the film has notable music (that is still remembered and loved today by the grown up counterculture) and hipster style that existed and lived in Soviet Union before it became popular in US.

If pre-perestroika and the mindset of different people during that time interests you, as well as learning about non-mainstream music and counterculture, this is the movie for you.

I really wanted to like this movie because one of my friends, with whom I have similar tastes with, recommended it. I loved the unique points of view of the camera and focus shots. The music was also amazing! Throughout the whole movie I kept wondering if the music was purposely written for this film. But the theme and story were a great disappointment. In the beginning, it seems like this man is a horrible person and you wonder how this movie will make him into a hero. But then, as the story unravels, it clears up the story little by little showing that this man is actually not who you thought he was. But not because you prejudged him (as in Les Misarables or similarly) but because the movie itself led you to believe that he was incarcerated for one crime, where he actually didn't commit it. So at the end you are just left with the feeling of broken judiciary system, rather than a transformation of character or feeling that you saw a different point of view. I did not feel enlightened from the predictable and a cliché "thriller" ending and ultimately felt like I watched a regular Hollywood movie.