Eduart

I was very pleasantly surprised by this film. The director successfully avoids all the cliché traps of a prison drama and manages to present a powerful account, reminiscent of Dostoevsky, of a man's journey to the most poignant realization that self-sacrifice is the requirement for the salvation of the soul.

The performances are esoteric and superb. Eshref Durmishi (Eduart) was brilliant in his portrayal of a disillusioned and reckless youngster who gradually discovers the meaning of suffering as a route to atonement. And the German doctor, movingly portrayed by André Hennicke, was simply astonishing in his desperate effort to find salvation at the darkest corners of the human condition.

Angeliki Antoniou's direction was powerful, austere and to the point, skilfully avoiding any superficial didacticism or melodrama. Great, solid film-making!