Typically I dislike the romance genre I don't fully know why, but it has never been my thing. However I strongly recommend watching this film. The film focuses mainly on the character Larissa, the daughter of a widowed noble woman who is poor. The mother in question is trying to marry off her daughters to wealthy and hopefully nice men. However later in the film even the daughters who were married off at the beginning of the film as well as prior to it, meet with bleak fates. Eventually Larissa meets with a similar fate as her sisters. This is just a brief synopsis the film is much deeper. It displays a situation that could have happened, or even might have happened in Russia during the late 19th century. However the situation in the film is not just an examination of things that happened in Russia. In fact it is more of an examination of the social norms surrounding women and marriage during that time period. As the film gets darker toward the end Larissa realizes how she is viewed by her suitors. She becomes aware that she is perceived as a fancy object and her life up to this point has basically been an auction. I have seen very few films regarding romance and marriage where a character becomes aware of their own objectification in such a way. There are many characters in the film that have a heavy impact on it, but the two that stand out are that stand out are Larissa and Paratov. Interestingly what makes them stand out is how much they have in common. Both are struck with misfortune as far as wealth goes, both have exceptional talent, and both are considered attractive. The main difference is that Paratov is a man which means that he can solve his misfortune in wealth through a variety of avenues. However Larissa is a woman and in this time period there's no way that she knows of out of her troubles unless it's through marriage. The music and cinematography is excellent. The camera work is stellar there are often shots through windows and as far as I know there were no signs of the cameras reflection in these. The music fits the tone and often matches up with the scenario it is accompanying. Otherwise it uses intentional dissonance. The acting is believable and is lively enough to keep me invested in the dialogue. As with any film I recommend seeing it in its native language.
Review of A Cruel Romance
