How I Ended This Summer

 A Russian film which won awards for best film, direction, cinematography and acting (for both leads) at various festivals including London, Chicago, Dublin and Berlin. Not our most popular presentation, but nevertheless got some excellent feedback – see below for comments. The most frequent rating was A- excellent (11 out of 29 forms returned). The lowest rating was E – poor – from one reviewer. Average rating worked out at 77%.

Pasha, the younger man, was for me the more interesting character. At one time, he put me in mind of Private Pike – a boy in a man's world playing shoot-em-up games on the computer and fooling around with the Isotope Beacon (of which more later). Then he is faced with a dilemma he is unable to resolve. Was I the only person who thought of Hamlet?

I wouldn't describe Sergei as Captain Mainwaring exactly but I'm sure he would have said the equivalent of “stupid boy” a few times. Initially, I saw him as a bit of a bully and sympathised with Pasha. Later we see under the gruff exterior a simple and compassionate man who reacts stoically in the face of tragedy.

Terrific acting from both men.

Some people found the pace of the film too slow. Not me. I thought it was gripping edge-of-the-seat stuff and the pace was just right. I didn't want it to end. Great cinematography too. I assume that he was using time-lapse techniques to depict the rapid change of conditions?

I was intrigued by the Isotope Beacon and did a bit of googling this morning. I came across this Wikipedia entry – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_thermoelectric_generator for a “radioisotope thermoelectric generator” (RTG). Apparently, this is a device that uses the heat generated by radioactive decay as a power source. A useful way of generating power in remote places like spacecraft. According to wikipedia, -

“the Soviet Union constructed many unmanned lighthouses and navigation beacons powered by RTGs. Powered by strontium-90, they are very reliable and provide a steady source of power. Critics argue that they could cause environmental and security problems as leakage or theft of the radioactive material could pass unnoticed for years, particularly as the locations of some of these lighthouses are no longer known due to poor record keeping. In one instance, the radioactive compartments were opened by a thief. In another case, three woodsmen in Georgia came across two ceramic RTG heat sources that had been stripped of their shielding; two of the three were later hospitalized with severe radiation burns after carrying the sources on their backs. The units were eventually recovered and isolated.

“There are approximately 1,000 such RTGs in Russia. All of them have long exhausted their 10-year engineered life spans. They are likely no longer functional, and may be in need of dismantling. Some of them have become the prey of metal hunters, who strip the RTGs' metal casings, regardless of the risk of radioactive contamination.”

There's a picture on wikipedia here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Soviet_RTG.jpg - showing what might have been the Isotope Beacon featured in the film.

So, a cross between Dad's Army, Hamlet and Scrapheap Challenge. What more could you want?

Comments from the audience feedback forms:

A
A
A	Atmospheric & tense. Excellent performances & photography
A	Bleak & gripping
A	More foreign films please
A	Really interesting
A	Wonderful film. Tragic and life affirming
A	Amazing acting and photography
A	But not exactly a feel good factor
A	The suspense was captivating. The actors were excellent and the scenery was bleak and raw
A	Terrific film. Beautifully photographed, great story, great characters. V moving end
B
B	Bleak
B	STUNNING
B	Well filmed portrayal of the impact of isolation and stress.]
B	THE PERSON NEXT TO ME GREW A BEARD IN THAT TIME!
B	Interesting character display of 2 people alone. Beautifully filmed
B/C	BLEAK
C	Slow and atmospheric. Entirely appropriate for such a bleak and desolate place.
C	Excellent acting; different and interesting story
C	Good Arctic scenery & lighting. Too slow – especially the first scene setting part.
C	Very intense.
C	Different and thought-provoking
C	Beautifully filmed and representing fear in isolation
C
C	Lots of weather. Intriguing relationship
D	Beautifully photographed and well acted – but too slow. The premise that the younger man would not tell the older man that his family was dead is unrealistic
D	Cinematic photography – tedious in parts, made my brain ache.
E	Long drawn out scenes. Meaningless holding of images.

The Telegraph's Tim Robey (4 stars)
Observer, Philip French
Comments in the Guardian from UK meteorologist Dr Liz Bentley
Peter Bradshaw in The Guardian (4 stars)
IMDB users gave it 7 out of 10
Rotten Tomatoes, 79%