The Edge - L'affrontement

It's simply and excellent film about decent folk made horrible by the war. Trying to find a way to live again.

It's a good story, well directed, shot and edited. What more can one ask for as a lover of this art form. Any rating below a 7 is just ridiculous.

I saw this at the 2011 Palm Springs International Film Festival. This was nominated for a Golden Globe in the Best Foreign Language Film category and was also Russia's official submission to the 83rd Academy Awards. From director Aleksei Uchitel and writer Aleksandr Gonorovsky, The Edge, which in Russian is Kray, meaning the end, was beautifully shot by cinematographer Yuri Klimenko with wonderful set staging by production designer Vera Zelinskaya. Essential to this film is the rapid fire sound by sound designer Krill Vasilenko and buffeted by a a great music soundtrack from Irish composer David Holmes. The story is set in the fall of 1945 at the close of WWII in a Siberian labor camp whose occupants harvest wood and produce charcoal to power the steam locomotives that traverse the Siberian wilderness. Ignat (Vladimir Mashkov) is a Russian war hero suffering from intense migraines who has been sent to the labor camp as a locomotive specialist. He starts up a relationship with Sofia (Yulia Peresild) by stealing her away from her fellow camp boyfriend. Ignat learns of a locomotive stranded in the woods and abandoned for years across the river. He hatches a plan to resurrect it to it's former glory in an anticipated race with his arch rival Major Fishman (Sergei Garmash) who is soon to replace the camps commander. While surveying the locomotive, Ignat encounters Elsa (Anjorka Strechel) a hostile German girl who has been living a feral life aboard the old train since the outbreak of the war. He soon enlists her help to free the locomotive and repair a bridge across the river and in doing so, becomes involved with her in a forbidden Russian-German love affair. It's been reported that writer Gornorovsky and director Uchitl collaborated on an astounding 100 rewrites to bring the script to film with rewrites going on as it was being filmed. It pays off in the final product. Filled with imagery such as the bear, the symbol of Russia, not Soviet Russia but Russia. In a metaphor, Russia the bear is eaten and stripped of it's hyde,cannibalized and crucified. The Edge is the edge of the world and the edge of human relations and human abilities. This is a powerful film like the locomotives it embraces and I would recommend it and give it a 9.0 out of 10.

I watched the whole thing for the sake of the main character, who I REALLY shouldn't have felt was in any way attractive (he's basically a brute). Maybe, if I'd watched it at another point in the month, I'd have felt differently and turned it off instead of watched it until the end, for if I saw such a man looking at me with such a hard, angry expression as he wears most of the time, I'd likely move away from him. I have zero interest in trains, so nothing with them excited me. So, the film became more about the drama between dirty, miserable, mean, predatory people who mostly seemed to dislike each other even when "friendly," in a sexual relationship, doing favors, whatever. Maybe that was the point. That being said, while I hated their discrimination, ignorance, and mob mentality, I feel for people having to live under those conditions, as such conditions help create such people. Ultimately, it was interesting from a cultural aspect. But that's about it. S/N: Also, the Russian girlfriend was pretty and had a nice figure.

I guess this film can be seen as a railroad or train film as some of the reviewers of limited cognitive skills have already observed. And the film's not for anyone who dislikes foreign language films (unless you speak Russian). I love Russian films and this one did not disappoint one bit. But I almost passed on watching it due to some grossly shortsighted reviews left by a larger number of critics than I would have expected.

This unpretentious film is skilfully woven with fascinating period detail from post WW2 1940s Russian life. The well researched film demonstrates understanding and depth in its commentary on Politics and life under Stalin as well as everyday peasant life, the food, clothing, the unique colloquialisms (hopefully genuine) - all were a delight to take in, and I think most who give The Edge a chance will be pleasantly surprised.

Don't look for a complex or sophisticated plot in this film, although the human qualities demonstrated are as visceral and carnal as the large brown bear which appears several times. But the storyline easily hangs together and works quite well as the period vehicle for what it was intended.

Certainly anyone with an interest in trains and locomotives, engineering or physics will enjoy this film, but I feel sorry for the critic who is unable to appreciate the many other delights which the talented director Aleksey Uchitel has given us.

Even now I wonder what the film's motive really was. From the start, the protagonist doesn't really have a goal. He seems to be a drifter landing a job as a train driver, but then the film doesn't give the character a goal. He simply finds ways to overcome obstacles in his way as he moves along. Having said this, though, for a film with little to no goal set for the main character, it was surprisingly interesting. Almost the entire film is set on trains, and I really loved that! This film will be an absolute feast for train enthusiasts. Vladimir Mashkov lent a wonderful charm to hard-ass character Ignat. Vladimir was an excellent choice for this role. The rest of the cast was also very good, and the cinematography was also excellent.