Elena
NYT Critic's Picks • 1h 49m
Andrey Zvyagintsev • 2011 • Russia • A woman fights for what's hers after her husband's death
Delving into the psyche of a morally ambiguous female protagonist, and featuring a haunting score by Philip Glass, Elena is a bold and stylish study of crime and punishment in contemporary Russia
Elena is a woman of a certain age, living in a chic Moscow apartment with her wealthy businessman husband. Here she is treated more like a housewife than a lover, perhaps retaining the vestiges her status as Vladimir's former nurse. While Vladimir is estranged from his daughter, he does not mask his contempt for Elena's own children, who seem to be in constant need of financial assistance. When Vladimir suddenly falls ill and his volatile, nihilistic daughter comes back into the picture, Elena must hatch a plan for her own survival.
Andrey Zvyagintsev's third feature premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won a Special Jury Prize. Elena is a New York Times Critics' Pick.
Up Next in NYT Critic's Picks
-
Elza
Mariette Monpierre • France • 2011 • A deeply personal coming-of-age story set in Guadalupe.
Bernadette has done everything for her daughter. Elza, the first college graduate in the family, has just completed a masters...
-
Fatima
Philippe Faucon • 2015 • France • Based on the poetry of Moroccan poet Fatima Elayoubi
Fatima is of North-African descent. Having relocated to France, she works as a cleaning lady so she can help pay her daughters' wa...
-
Fire at Sea
Gianfranco Rosi • 2016 • Italy
A small fishing town emerges as the nexus of the refugee crisis.
Halfway between Sicily and the coast of Tunisia lies a tiny island with a dwindling full-time population of several...
