In the Fog

I watched In the Fog this June in Midnight Sun Film Festival in Sodankylä, Finland, with other four films by Sergei Losnitza which were presented there. While I really liked all the films I saw, this is the one which touched me the most.

The director Losnitza has stripped the story from everything that's not essential to show the tension and hopelessness of the situation the main character is in. Vladimir Svirskiy's acting is excellent and perfectly delivers Sushenya's a sort of fatalistic understanding of the gravity of his situation, as he has been made an unwilling pawn in a wartime plot of the occupiers. He has no friends, no place in the world, no direction except to follow his executioners, who then will become his closest confidants.

"In the fog" is a movie with a complicated story about loyalty and betrayal in a Second World War resistance group.

"In the fog" loosely resembles "Rashomon" (1950, Akira Kurosawa), with the emphasis on loosely. In "Rashomon" there are various alternative versions of the truth. The conclusion is that perhaps such a thing as the single ultimate truth does not exist. In "In the fog" there is an ultimate truth, but in reality the way thinks look like is often far more important and influential than the way things really are.

Belarus is not a country with a real film tradition, and I am always interested in films from such "forgotten" (in the sense of film history) areas. Sometimes is is not a single director who attracts attention, but a whole new wave of promising directors. Take for example Romania where in a few years directors such as Cristi Puiu ("The death of Mr Lazarescu", 2005), Corneliu Porumboiu ("12:08 East of Buchares", 2006) and last but not least Cristian Mungiu ("Four month, three weeks and two days", 2007) scored a big hit in the Western art house cinema's. By the way Oleg Mutu, the cinematographer of Cristian Mungiu, also shot "In the fog".

However, director Sergey Loznitsa did not start a Belorussian new wave. He made documentaries before "In the fog", and he continued making documentaries after it. One exception is the movie "Donbass" from 2018. This film is situated in the east of the Ukraine and shows the influence of fake news on society in the post thruth era. In this respect "Donbass" further elaborates on the themes already visible in "In the fog".

dark, slow, cold. slice from recent history. more than a movie, a reflection support. because it is not the story of a character but the story of a generation. it is not only a film who reminds Stalker by Tarkovsky but tool for discover a side of every day reality. a film about choices and profound cruelty. about the thin line between justice and errors. and about the real purpose of a life. a film who is not easy to see. because it seems be boring and cold and neutral and to simple or too confuse. in fact, it is a testimony. far by American blockbusters, using the old Russian cinema marks. a honest movie. that is all. simple, direct,cold, slow, dark, page from recent history.

it is the film of the state after the final credits. because it is not only a war film. but a film about the thin line between fundamental choices. about the answers who defines a man more than the circumstances. and this is the motif for define "In the Fog", after a long time when I saw it, a profound special film. sure, pieces from Soviet war films are present. but it is not fair to reduce to them. because it is a film about viewer. in profound sense. an "if" who not could be reduced at a story on the screen. and this does it an useful film. and opportunity to imagine the world as a delicate balance between choices.

"Fair is foul, and foul is fair, hover through the fog and filthy air," said the witches of MacBeth. Belarus, long occupied by the Germans during World War II, might well have been under the witches spell. Confusion is a fog that swallows soldiers, spies, special forces, partisans, police, rogue agents and civilians alike. They stab at each other in the dark, misjudging their prey and striking the heart of a friend.

Sushenya is caught by the Germans while sabotaging railroad tracks and instead of being put to death with his comrades, is inexplicably set free. Shooting him in the head would have done him a favor though, for Sushenya is now dead meat to his former pals. Minds are set in stone, traps are set, ambushes await, and Sushenya disappears into the forest and fog to meet his fate.

In the Fog is a thrilling combination of action and artistry, brain and brawn. One moment someone is discussing guilt and betrayal with their trusted comrade, and the next they get hit over the head with a brick by the same. There is light and sympathy too, but rare in such a place as Belarus under the German boot. Better to trust no one and wish for luck. A raw, deep and enthralling film. Seen at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival.