Unclenching the Fists (Russian: Разжимая кулаки, lit. 'Razzhimaya kulaki') is a 2021 Ossetian-language Russian drama film directed by Kira Kovalenko.[3] In July 2021, the film won the Un Certain Regard award at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival.[4][5] It was selected as the Russian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.[6]
| Unclenching the Fists | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Kira Kovalenko |
| Written by | Kira Kovalenko |
| Produced by | Sergey Melkumov Aleksandr Rodnyansky |
| Starring | Milana Aguzarova |
| Cinematography | Pavel Fomintsev |
| Edited by | Vincent Deveaux Mukharam Kabulova |
Production company | Non-Stop Productions |
| Distributed by | Pioneer |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 97 minutes[1] |
| Country | Russia |
| Language | Ossetian[2] |
Plot
editAda, stifled by her overbearing father and by her lack of prospects, dreams of escaping from her life in a small town of Mizur in North Ossetia, Russia.[2]
Cast
edit- Milana Aguzarova as Ada
- Alik Karayev as Father
- Soslan Khugayev as Akim
Reception
editOn review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 88% based on 24 reviews, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The website's critical consensus states: "A daring feature debut for director/co-writer Kira Kovalenko, Unclenching the Fists, explores how family ties can stifle as much as they support".[7] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 68 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[8]
In their co-authored review for the Los Angeles Review of Books', Alexis Bliziotis and Sasha Karsavina analyse the film as a metaphor for Russia's current cultural climate of historical revisionism, in which ethnic and linguistic minorities get erased and forgotten.[1]
Salon.com's Gary M. Kramer, praised the director's view calling it "[an] urgent, unsentimental approach [is] what makes Unclenching the Fists so potent".[9]
Diego Semerene of Slant Magazine wrote "Unclenching the Fists is a tale of how the desolation of a nation inhabits and engraves a woman's body".[10]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Unclenching the Fists". TIFF. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
- ^ a b "Премьера на КиноПоиске: Трейлер фильма Киры Коваленко "Разжимая кулаки"". КиноПоиск (in Russian). Retrieved 16 November 2022.
- ^ Bell, Nicholas (5 January 2021). "Top 100 Most Anticipated Foreign Films of 2021: #58. Kira Kovalenko's Unclenching the Fists". Ion Cinema. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
- ^ Sharf, Zack (10 June 2021). "Cannes Film Festival 2021 Lineup: Sean Baker, Wes Anderson, and More Compete for Palme d'Or". IndieWire. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
- ^ Lodge, Guy (16 July 2021). "Russian Drama 'Unclenching the Fists' Takes Top Prize at Cannes Un Certain Regard Awards". Variety.
- ^ Roxborough, Scott (25 October 2021). "Oscars: Russia Picks 'Unclenching the Fists' for International Feature Category". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
- ^ "Unclenching the Fists (2021)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
- ^ "Unclenching the Fists". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
- ^ Kramer, Gary M. (5 October 2021). ""Unclenching the Fists" is a shattering picture of one woman's inability to escape her needy family". Salon.com. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
- ^ Semerene, Diego (12 September 2021). "Review: Unclenching the Fists Palpably Conjures the Ties that Bind, and Fray". Slant Magazine.