The Kosmorama Award 2008 goes to a film who succeeds in showing war from a new perspective. The camera’s painterly presence portrays the grandmother Alexandra’s journey to a Russian military base in occupied territory to visit her grandson who is based there.
From her mere presence emanates a human dignity and integrity, sharply contrasting the military base and the actions of war constantly present as a backdrop. Her choice to ignore military rules and laws brings forward a respect which is about everything else but military power. We can see this in some moving sequenses where the soldiers are serving her dinner and her grandson is plaiting her hair.
The films greatest asset is the remarkable acting by Galina Vishnevskaya, in combination with a filmmaker who knows how to give ample space for her performance. Summing up, a film with a rich cinematic expression where the poetic and the ambigious makes room for reflection.