PRISONER OF THE MOUNTAINS Russia

Shot during the bloody conflict in
Chechenya not far from an actual location
which a number of Chechen rebels called
home, this film about love, brutality and
humanity in a time of war achieves an
unusual immediacy. Two wounded Russian
soldiers are taken prisoner by AbdulMurat,
a Chechen man who hopes to
trade them to the Russian army for the
release of his son. When both this son and
one of the Russian prisoners are killed in
escape attempts, the surviving soldier is
left in naked circumstances. His only comfort
in the midst of captivity and abuse is
the love of his captor’s young daughter,
who knows that her village is crying out
for blood. Based on a story by Leo Tolstoy,
this is a felt film about the hatred that holds
all sides captive. Prisoner of the Mountains
is John Powers’ (Vogue Magazine) Critic’s
Choice