The Postman's White Nights (2014)

The film represents life in a godforsaken Russian village. The only way to reach the mainland is to cross the lake by boat and a postman became the only connection with the outside world. A... See full summary »

Director:

Andrey Konchalovskiy

Writers:

Andrey Konchalovskiy, Elena Kiseleva

Stars:

Aleksey Tryapitsyn, Irina Ermolova, Timur Bondarenko

4 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Aleksey Tryapitsyn	...	Lyokha
Irina Ermolova	...	Irina
Timur Bondarenko	...	Timur
Viktor Kolobkov	...	Kolobok
Viktor Berezin	...	Vitya
Tatyana Silich	...	Tatyana
Irina Silich	...	Sestra Tatyany
Yuriy Panfilov	...	Yura
Nikolay Kapustin	...	Kolya
Sergey Yurev	...	Uchastkovyy
Valentina Ananina	...	Valentina
Lyubov Skorina	...	Lyubov Pavlovna
Lyubov Zykova	...	Sestra Lyokhi
Natalya Semyonova	...	Nachalnik gorodskogo Pochtamta
Margarita Titova	...	Nachalnik derevenskogo Pochtovogo otdeleniya

Storyline

The film represents life in a godforsaken Russian village. The only way to reach the mainland is to cross the lake by boat and a postman became the only connection with the outside world. A reserved community has been set up here. Despite the modern technologies and a spaceport nearby the people of the village live the way they would in the Neolithic Era. There is neither government nor social services or jobs. The postman's beloved woman escapes the village life and moves to the city. Postman's outboard engine gets stolen and he can no longer deliver mail. His normal pattern of life is disrupted. The postman makes a decision to leave for the city too but returns before long with no certain reason. The script is based on real characters' stories. People from the village play their own parts in the film. The search for the protagonist lasted for over a year.

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Plot Keywords:

isolated place | 2010s | alcoholism | poaching | illegal fishing | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Antipode Sales and Distribution [Russia] Konchalovsky.ru [Russia]

Country:

Russia

Language:

Russian

Release Date:

8 June 2015 (Slovenia)

Also Known As:

The Postman's White Nights

Filming Locations:

Kenozersky National Park, Arkhangelskaya oblast, Russia

Box Office

Budget:

EUR1,200,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$42,491

Company Credits

Production Co:

Production Center of Andrei Konchalovsky, Russian Ministry of Culture

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The protagonist acting as the postman is not a professional actor but a real person working as a postman in the same Russian village.

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Soundtracks

Messa da Requiem
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
Performed by Russian State Symphony Orchestra

User Reviews

Beautiful film

This film may be much too subtle for some who are accustomed to the Hollywood-type lowest common denominator message delivery. The conversations and interactions are not stylized or dramatized - they are very natural. The scenery is stern and beautiful and the camera work is magnificent. What is especially remarkable is how gently and thoughtfully the characters are portrayed. The postman is an exceptionally kind soul. He is not handsome or muscular and he does not commit any violent acts but he is still "created in God's image" and, in his own way, very heroic. Others may be superfluous, primitive and flawed, but the film manages to fully humanize them and make them very sympathetic and likable. Another reviewer mentioned the contrast between the launch of the space rocket and the simple life of the villagers, but that is not the main point of the film. However poor these people are, the rocket does not diminish their humanity. In fact, the characters do not even notice it. It does not matter anymore that the spaceships are plowing the expanses of the universe. The scenes where the postman looks at a little ant, or hears the sounds of the past in the decaying school building, are even more profound. The important and skillfully developed idea here is that, however remote this place is, the now abandoned people living there still got caught up in the historical events forced upon them, and those events left them scarred for life.