Visceral black and white condemnation of the extraordinary potential for superstition, religion and rule by force to enact the most brutal treatment of others, from Russian brothers Arkady and Boris Strugatsky, brought to the screen by Aleksei German. Will we ever reach that place so powerfully imagined by these people, where such a state as Arkankar is unthinkable? Still loved in Russia, during the Soviet period the dream of progress that caused the Strugatsky's to create the Noon Universe, of which the story for this film is one piece, must have been an achingly tangible and at the same time impossible fantasy. In any case, German has taken the idea and without flinching shown the worst of us, while imagining the best of us. Great cinematography, close quarters conversations a la Robert Altman, and images you won't forget.
Review of Hard to Be a God
