The Criminal Man (2019)

An uneventful life of Giorgi Meskhi, a 28-year-old deputy-chief engineer from an industrial town, turns upside down when he accidentally witnesses a murder of the famous goalkeeper. He ... See full summary »

Director:

Dmitry Mamuliya

Writers:

Archil Kikodze, Dmitry Mamuliya

Stars:

Madona Chachkhiani, Natalia Jugheli, Vladimer Kobakhidze

3 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Madona Chachkhiani
Natalia Jugheli
Vladimer Kobakhidze	...	Policeman Lado
Goderdzi Liparteliani	...	Policeman Goderdzi
Giorgi Petriashvili	...	George Meskhi
Nukri Revishvili
Anna Talakvadze
Vasilisa Zemskova

Storyline

An uneventful life of Giorgi Meskhi, a 28-year-old deputy-chief engineer from an industrial town, turns upside down when he accidentally witnesses a murder of the famous goalkeeper. He attends the funeral and while trying to stay unnoticed, spies on the wife and daughter of the deceased. After returning home he attempts to call the police but hangs up upon hearing the voice of the officer. From day to day, he keeps returning to the crime scene as the murder infects him like a virus, until eventually becoming his obsession. Absorbed by everything connected to the crime, he studies the faces of the criminals, as if trying to solve a mystery. He seems to be obsessed with more than the murder he witnessed. Being a 'nobody' he accomplishes series of actions that should turn him into 'somebody', but who? A murderer? He buys a gun as he assumes his new self and tries to fit into a new role, holding it ineptly against random victims. This is a story about the birth of a murderer. Piece by ...

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Genres:

Thriller

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Details

Official Sites:

Information about the film

Country:

Georgia Russia

Language:

Georgian

Release Date:

4 September 2019 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Borotmokmedi

Company Credits

Production Co:

Millimeter Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

135 min

Sound Mix:

D-Cinema 48kHz 5.1 Stereo

Color:

Color

User Reviews

Soporific. Insincere.

DoPs Gromov and Chamidchodjaev's bleak, ravishing images will probably sweep you away into existential la-la land, that is, if you manage to keep your eyes open long enough, because Dmitry Mamulia's rambling 135 minute "The Criminal Man" is truly a visual tour de force. Unfortunately that's all it is. It has none of the dynamism of "The Deer Hunter" or the haunting suspense of "Stalker". I happen to love long, meditative films but, crikey, in our party of three, two of us fell asleep! It would appear that some filmmakers are such consummate craftsmen, so carried away by the technique of constructing and shooting scenes (even pointless ones), of evoking a dreamy atmosphere (merely for its own sake), they forget that they're also supposed to be telling a story. As Tarkovsky said, any director worthy of the name, has to have an authentic, personal vision and if he or she does, this will allow them to get away with practically anything. But vision is something that can't be crafted or counterfeited and if viewers cotton on that a director is simply trying to manipulate them, i.e., to generate feelings he himself doesn't happen to feel, the end effect is just irritation, or even worse - boredom.