kursk movie review guardian

Today's news
Reviews and deals
Climate change
2024 election
Newsletters
Fall allergies
Health news
Mental health
Sexual health
Family health
So mini ways
Unapologetically
Buying guides
Labor Day sales

Entertainment

How to Watch
My watchlist
Stock market
Biden economy
Personal finance
Stocks: most active
Stocks: gainers
Stocks: losers
Trending tickers
World indices
US Treasury bonds
Top mutual funds
Highest open interest
Highest implied volatility
Currency converter
Basic materials
Communication services
Consumer cyclical
Consumer defensive
Financial services
Industrials
Real estate
Mutual funds
Credit cards
Balance transfer cards
Cash back cards
Rewards cards
Travel cards
Online checking
High-yield savings
Money market
Home equity loan
Personal loans
Student loans
Options pit
Fantasy football
Pro Pick 'Em
College Pick 'Em
Fantasy baseball
Fantasy hockey
Fantasy basketball
Download the app
Daily fantasy
Scores and schedules
GameChannel
World Baseball Classic
Premier League
CONCACAF League
Champions League
Motorsports
Horse racing

New on Yahoo

Privacy Dashboard

Opinion: The Kursk incursion underlines the urgency of unrestricted support for Ukraine

Now is not the time to micro-manage Kyiv’s actions or to withhold supplies and impose strict caveats on equipment use, especially against military targets in Russian territory, out of fear of escalating the war, possibly to a nuclear level.

Over the past few years, Ukrainians have learned that externally-imposed restrictions, aimed at keeping the war contained within Ukraine’s borders, have only enabled Russia and, tragically, led Ukraine into a lethal war of attrition. It’s too early to judge if Kyiv’s recent military incursion into Kursk Oblast, launched in early August, was the right approach, though it has succeeded in boosting the morale of Ukrainian troops and civilians, especially after the failure of the 2023 counteroffensive against entrenched Russian defenses.

Ukrainians and their allies have been concerned that the sheer scale of Russian numbers could eventually give Russia the upper hand against the determined but numerically disadvantaged Ukrainians. Despite Russia having already suffered 600,000 casualties, with 15-20% of these being fatalities, its population is at least four times larger than Ukraine's, and its economy is 15 times the size. This disparity is evident in Russia's mobilization numbers and its defense industry’s capacity to expand.

The Ukrainian intervention in Kursk has several objectives, according to Oleksandr Merezhko, the chair of Kyiv’s parliamentary foreign affairs committee. These include relieving pressure on other fronts and providing a buffer zone for Ukrainian forces around the eastern Ukrainian city of Sumy.

Strategically, it also demonstrates, he says, "that we can turn the tide and show results to Western taxpayers." He hopes the Kursk operation will have a similar impact to the Wagner mutiny, which saw Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner Group, drive from Rostov-on-Don to Moscow in June 2023. This event, which ended in negotiations with a surprised Kremlin, highlighted the vulnerabilities and weaknesses within the Russian state.

Read also: The Counteroffensive: How Ukraine uses ‘The Lord of the Rings’ to frame its battle for survival

The Kursk advance creates an opportunity for diplomatic leverage. Until now, the political efforts for peace have lagged behind the military developments.

Ukraine’s move into Russia should be viewed in the context of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s 10-point peace plan. For peace to take hold, Ukraine must show that there are greater benefits to peace than to continuing the war, and demonstrate a viable path to achieving it. Additionally, external powers must actively encourage both sides to come to the negotiating table.

Enormous challenges remain, particularly among states that prioritize narrow interests over human rights. Some key African and Latin American countries fall into this category, such as Colombia and South Africa. While South Africa has pressured Israel over Gaza through international courts, it has not done the same with Russia, its BRICS ally, regarding the full-scale war against Ukraine.

Egypt and Ethiopia are similarly among the fence-sitters, indicating as much about their preference for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s style of governance as their interests in arms transfers and geopolitical allegiances. Brazil and China, with their own peace formula, essentially offer a rival process to Ukraine’s, potentially with tacic Russian support as fellow BRICS members.

Rival processes often expect Ukraine to make concessions that China, Brazil, or other BRICS members would be unwilling to make. Most Ukrainians are committed to one key negotiating principle: the return of all territory according to the 1991 borders, including Crimea. That Ukraine is striving for its sovereignty should be important to African states in particular, given the continental propensity for weak borders that criss-cross ethnic allegiances and communities.

Neutrality in this conflict often equates to working in Russia’s favor. A Russian victory would suggest, as former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko put it, that "Dictators International" would be the norm. This has broader implications for democrats everywhere, from Venezuela to Zimbabwe, where civilians struggle against authoritarianism.

Goals also matter. Ukraine’s demands are not just about territory; as Nobel laureate Oleksandra Matviichuk points out, they represent "a historic opportunity to change the approach to justice for war crimes." War tends to deepen poverty, and in Kharkiv, the daily reality of war is evident in the ruined buildings and the constant threat of air raids.

The cost of turning a blind eye to Russia’s wanton destruction in eastern and southern Ukraine extends beyond the loss of civilian lives and infrastructure. It reflects a situation where the state's interests overshadow those of the individual, contrary to the human rights principles established after World War II.

Ukraine will need safeguards, such as potential membership in the European Union and NATO (with interim NATO-like security guarantees). The goal is to achieve EU membership by 2029, ahead of the next European parliamentary elections, according to Maria Mezentseva, a Ukrainian MP from Kharkiv working on Euro-Atlantic integration. While NATO membership could be challenging while at war, Ukraine's interoperability with NATO demonstrates progress.

The Russian invasion has accelerated Ukraine’s integration with the West. This has been facilitated not only by accession talks but also by the movement of people, with over five million Ukrainian refugees in Europe, and the strengthening of logistics chains with the West. Ukraine’s leadership in defense technology innovation also reflects this shift. While there is still much to be done, especially in governance, the benefits of this integration are evident: Ukraine’s per capita wealth is just $2,200, compared to the Eurozone average of $37,400.

Ukraine’s progress post-war will depend on the continued flow of financial support, which will rely on its role as a bulwark against Russia and its ability to improve governance and combat corruption. For now, the priority remains maintaining the flow of money and arms from the West while pursuing peace – an ongoing balancing act skillfully managed by Zelensky.

Ukraine demonstrates the crucial role of technology in modern warfare. Without the internet and advancements in drone technology, soldiers would operate almost blindly. Yet, the fundamentals of war—logistics, training, mass, maneuver, and fighting spirit—remain constant. Khartiia’s officer praised his troops’ proficiency with the Browning ‘5-oh,’ considered a ‘strategic weapon’ by the Russians, but noted a shortage of artillery ammunition, particularly of NATO standards.

Ukraine can still do more, especially in mobilizing troops, despite advances through apps like Reserve-Plus and Army-Plus. Only infantry can hold ground effectively at this stage, as drones are not yet a substitute. Kyiv feels oddly normal compared to a wartime city, contrasting with the image of London in 1942. Effective debt management and financial sacrifices are necessary, echoing Churchill’s reminder that sometimes “you must do what is required.”

Ukraine should be cautious not to take outside assistance for granted, as the recent experience in Afghanistan highlights the unpredictability of international support and the severe consequences of misplaced trust.

In the midst of the Kursk incursion, excluding the possibilities of Putin’s departure or a Russian economic collapse, four potential peace scenarios emerge.

Read also: Opinion: How Oleksandr Dubovyk’s ‘bouquet’ philosophy is shaping a global Ukrainian renaissance

The first would involve Ukraine expelling Russia, either through military action or negotiations. This would require the timely delivery of promised Western weapons and the deployment of well-trained, refreshed Ukrainian brigades.

A second scenario is that Kyiv might negotiate from a position of weakness.

A third possibility is meeting Putin’s demands, which would entail Ukraine forgoing NATO (or EU) membership for security guarantees. This assumes Putin would abandon what former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko describes as an “imperial project to recreate the Russian empire,” an ambition he argues is impossible without Ukraine.

The fourth, more speculative scenario is that an outsider – such as former U.S. President Donald Trump or even Chinese President Xi Jinping – might threaten both Russia and Ukraine with increased escalation or reduced support in order to broker a deal.

These scenarios hinge on the level of support among Ukrainians for negotiations. Support for Zelensky has dropped from over 90% at the start of 2023 to 54% in June (before the Kursk invasion). Fewer Ukrainians are willing to negotiate if it involves conceding territory acquired after 1991. Support for negotiating to end the war fell from 43% to 26% when respondents were asked to choose between negotiating with Russia and continuing the fight. Ultimately, peace will be a political decision.

The Kursk incursion seeks to counter Russia's overwhelming economic and numerical strength through surprise, maneuver, and Ukrainian tactical ingenuity. “It appeared that Ukraine was going to fall,” admits Oleksandr Lytvynenko, Secretary of Ukraine’s National Defense and Security Council, describing Russia's advance as “one hundred to two hundred meters per day, very slow, but seemingly unstoppable.”

Turning the tactical gains from Kursk into strategic success depends on several factors, including the scale, speed, and type of international assistance. Zelensky stressed on August 17, 11 days into the operation, that “it is undoubtedly important for us that our partners remove the barriers that prevent us from weakening Russian positions as required by the course of the war.” Long-range capabilities are key to resolving the most critical issues, but there’s also the need to build diplomatic support, maintain economic stability, and strengthen the armed forces to withstand Russia’s military.

While the operation is risky, Kursk has already shifted the war’s narrative. Whether this shift will be enough to sustain international support—particularly with the US election in November 2024 looming—depends on Kyiv’s ability to hold its ground as leverage in future negotiations. Support for Ukraine or Russia ultimately ties into the broader issue of defending or opposing the international rules-based order, especially the principle of non-interference in states' internal affairs. Russia and its allies want to deepen this principle domestically while maintaining the right to interfere externally.

With Kursk, the stakes have risen, and they could climb even higher if Ukraine launches further surprise actions, such as in Crimea or elsewhere. Lytvynenko points out that Russia’s strategy rests on rejecting Ukrainian identity. “But,” he smiles, “we don’t think this way because, axiomatically, we are not Russian.” However, he warns against Ukraine engaging in a drawn-out war of attrition, given Russia's numerical advantage. Instead, Kyiv must focus on an asymmetric strategy – fighting smart. “We have no territorial claims against Russia,” Lytvynenko adds. “We don’t want to intervene in Russia or change its government. We just want to determine our own future.”

Ukraine’s ability to determine its future depends on battlefield success. Given the broader implications for international law, human rights, and justice, Ukrainians deserve not just to see Putin defeated – they deserve victory.

Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the views of the Kyiv Independent.

Submit an Opinion

We’ve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent .

Election 2024
Entertainment
Newsletters
Photography
AP Buyline Personal Finance
AP Buyline Shopping
Press Releases
Israel-Hamas War
Russia-Ukraine War
Global elections
Asia Pacific
Latin America
Middle East
Election results
Google trends
AP & Elections
U.S. Open Tennis
Paralympic Games
College football
Auto Racing
Movie reviews
Book reviews
Financial Markets
Business Highlights
Financial wellness
Artificial Intelligence
Social Media

Putin’s slow response to the Kursk attack could test the patience of some of his backers in Russia

Ukrainian soldiers in Eastern Ukraine defended the city of Pokrovsk with heavy artillery on Wednesday as Russian forces advanced toward the critical logistics hub. (AP video shot by Alex Babenko)

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during an event to mark the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Kursk in World War II at a memorial in the village of Ponyri, near Kursk, Russia, on Aug. 23, 2023. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - A destroyed Russian tank sits on a roadside near the town of Sudzha, Russia, in the Kursk region, on Aug. 16, 2024. This image was approved by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry before publication. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - Residents shelter in a basement in the Kursk region town of Sudzha, Russia, on Aug. 16, 2024. This image was approved by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry before publication. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin greets an unidentified relative of a seaman who was believed killed aboard the nuclear submarine Kursk at the military base of Vedyayevo, 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of Murmansk, Russia, on Aug. 22, 2000. (AP Photo/POOL, File)

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, listens to acting Gov. Alexei Smirnov of the Kursk region during a videoconference at Putin’s Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia, on Aug. 8, 2024. (Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - Russian Presdient Vladimir Putin, left, and Nadezhda Shakhatinina, mother of Alexei Nikolayev, a sailor killed in the sinking of the nuclear submarine Kursk in 2000, stand near Nikolayev’s grave in Kursk, about 450 kilometers (285 miles) south of Moscow, on Aug.19, 2003. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev, File)

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures as he talks to journalists before a series of meetings with leaders of seven other former Soviet republics in the Black Sea resort of Yalta, on Aug. 18, 2000. Putin attended the summit despite the sinking of the nuclear submarine Kursk days earlier. (AP Photo/Alexander Natruskin/Pool, File)

FILE - A damaged monument to Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin stands in a central square in the Kursk region town Sudzha, Russia, on Aug. 16, 2024. This image was approved by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry before publication. (AP Photo, File)

Copy Link copied

A year ago this week, President Vladmir Putin strode onto a stage in the Kursk region to commemorate the 80th anniversary of one of the Soviet army’s proudest moments in World War II.

Addressing a rapt audience that included soldiers fresh from fighting in Ukraine, Putin called the decisive victory in the Battle of Kursk “one of the great feats of our people.”

Now, as Russia prepares to celebrate the 81st anniversary of that 1943 battle on Friday, Kursk is again in the news — but for a very different reason.

On Aug. 6, Ukrainian forces made a lightning push into the region, seizing villages, taking hundreds of prisoners and forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of civilians. Russia was caught unprepared by the offensive and reportedly is drafting conscripts to repel some of Ukraine’s most battle-hardened units.

Putin has a history of responding slowly to various crises in his tenure , and he has so far played down the attack. But 2 1/2 years after launching a war in Ukraine to remove what he called a threat to Russia, it is his own country that seems more turbulent.

He appeared uneasy at an Aug. 12 televised meeting of security heads about Kursk, cutting off the acting regional governor who had started listing the settlements seized by Ukraine. The president and his officials referred to “the events in the Kursk region” as a “situation,” or “provocation.”

State media fell into line, showing evacuees queueing for aid or donating blood, as if the events in Kursk were a humanitarian disaster and not the largest attack on Russia since World War II.

In his 24 years in power, Putin has portrayed himself as the only person who can guarantee Russia’s security and stability, but that image has suffered since the war began.

Russian cities repeatedly have come under shelling and drone attacks — including dozens of drones reported downed Wednesday . Mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin launched a brief uprising last year to try to oust his military leaders. Gunmen stormed a Moscow concert hall and killed 145 people in March.

The Kremlin has given tacit approval to a wide-ranging purge of Defense Ministry officials, with many facing corruption charges. Lower-level officers also are being arrested on fraud charges, including Lt. Col. Konstantin Frolov, a decorated airborne brigade commander. “I would rather be in Kursk ... than here,” he said while being marched in handcuffs into a Moscow police station.

In another reminder that fortunes in Russia can change quickly, authorities started criminal cases against other officials and are seeking to confiscate land from some of the country’s wealthiest people in a posh area outside Moscow near a Putin residence.

While state TV drives the still-strong support for Putin despite setbacks like the Kursk incursion, it’s harder to gauge the opinions of his key constituency — Russia’s elites.

Putin is dependent on their acquiescence, said Ekaterina Schulmann, a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center in Berlin.

“The calculation that’s going on in their heads 24/7 is whether the status quo is to their advantage or not,” she said.

Since the war began, life for those elites — Putin’s inner circle, top bureaucrats, security and military officials, and business leaders — has gotten worse, not better. While many have been enriched by the war, they have fewer places to spend their money because of Western sanctions.

The question they are asking themselves about Putin, Schulmann said, “is whether the old man is still an asset or already a liability.”

Russia’s elites could be described as being in a state of “unhappy compliance,” said Nigel Gould-Davies, senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. They are discontented with the status quo, he said, but fearful about who would win if there were to be a leadership struggle.

They could be hoping, the analysts said, that Putin’s reaction to the events in Kursk fits a pattern in which he is initially slow to respond to a crisis before eventually managing to prevail.

It’s something seen since his earliest days in power — starting with the sinking 24 years ago of a nuclear submarine that was named for the Battle of Kursk.

On Aug. 19, 2000, less than a year after Putin became president, the Kursk sank in the Barents Sea after one of its torpedoes exploded, killing all 118 sailors aboard. Putin stayed on vacation early in the crisis — setting off widespread criticism — and waited five days before accepting Western offers of help that might have saved some sailors who initially survived the explosion.

Putin also appeared sluggish in responding to the June 2023 uprising by Wagner chief Prigozhin in what became the most serious challenge to his authority yet.

After the mutiny fizzled, Prigozhin initially was allowed to remain free, but Schulmann said Putin eventually “got the last laugh” when the mercenary leader was killed a month later in a still-mysterious crash on his private plane.

As the Ukrainian offensive enters its third week, Putin sought to keep to his schedule and even embarked on a two-day trip to Azerbaijan, without mentioning the crisis. On Tuesday he briefly referred to it, promising “to fight those who commit crimes in the Kursk region.”

Still, Putin’s hold on power “is unlikely to be weakened as a result of this humiliation,” wrote Eugene Rumer, senior fellow and the director of the Carnegie Russia and Eurasia Program, in a commentary. “The entire Russian political and military establishment is complicit in his war and responsible for this disaster.”

The longer the Ukrainian offensive goes on, however, the more military and political challenges it presents.

Russia appears to be struggling to find suitable forces to repel the Ukrainian assault. Despite promising that conscripts wouldn’t be sent to the front, Russia is deploying them to the Kursk region with not enough training, according to a human rights group that helps draftees.

Analysts say reserves also are being called up, so that Russia can avoid pulling troops from Ukraine’s Donbas region, where Moscow’s forces are making slow progress.

The manpower shortage has seen authorities trying to entice Russians to serve by offering large salaries, drafting convicted criminals from prisons and recruiting foreigners inside the country.

As Ukraine presses its offensive, it could become difficult for the Kremlin to ignore the many consequences of the war. A key question, Gould-Davies said, is what happens if Russia’s elites conclude that the conflict is “unwinnable or if ... it will never end while Putin is in power.”

In Sudzha, a Russian town in the Kursk region now controlled by Ukrainian troops, the suffering of residents was clear. AP reporters on a Ukrainian government-organized trip last week saw shelled buildings, a damaged natural gas pumping station, and elderly residents huddled in basements with their belongings and food — images similar to what’s been seen in Ukraine for the past 29 months.

It’s unclear for now whether the second battle of Kursk, like the first one, will become a turning point in the war that Putin launched.

But, Schulmann said, as one of a “series of unfortunate events, it adds up to the impression that things are not going well.”

KURSK: The Command That Ended In Tragedy

Omni loop: trailer 1, alien: romulus: a love letter to the alien franchise, with mixed results, woman of the hour trailer 1, the becomers: what’s weirder, aliens or 2020, kraven the hunter: trailer 1, saturday night trailer 1, this is no game: why ready or not still matters, rebel ridge trailer 1, alien: romulus: not quite stellar, his three daughters trailer 1, popcorn frights 2024: lizzie lazarus, strange darling trailer 1.

Thomas Vinterberg ’s Kursk (The Command) is a heart-wrenching drama detailing the disastrous explosion of a Russian submarine that sank to the bottom of the Barents Sea in 2000, where 118 men lost their lives. A haunting waiting game, the two dozen survivors of the initial torpedo explosions wait for rescue as their oxygen supply drops dangerously fast while above sea, Russian Navy officials work to save them. However, due to arrogant pride and an unwillingness to accept assistance from foreign navies, the wait would never meet salvation.

The film begins with a band of sailors looking to scrounge enough money for their friend’s wedding, decidedly selling their watches in order to purchase enough champagne for the festivities. During the wedding itself, we witness the crew’s close bond, as if brothers of the sea, a family dedicated to their country. The next day, they descend into the deep sea to conduct a weapon test on missiles and torpedoes, a naval mission that had not been attempted in Russia for nearly a decade prior.

As the internal temperature of a torpedo reaches a deadly level, permission is denied to take action, thus a ticking time bomb begins. Merely seconds later, a crew member tells another to pray and when he replies that he is not a religious man, its as if God swipes an angry fist, brandishing it down upon the Kursk as the torpedo explodes in a fiery rage.

Above and Below

Mikhail Averin ( Matthias Schoenaerts ) leaves behind his three-year-old son and pregnant wife on land as he works tirelessly to keep himself and his crew alive in a wet and chilling compartment of the Kursk. Having to fight off hypothermia and rising water levels, the crew scrambles to collect oxygen cartridges; found on a mission into the destroyed submarine compartments flooded with dark abyss. The element that water plays is eerily calm and timeless as Averin cuts through the water in multiple shots. Despite the urgency, the serenity of this scene only adds to the momentum of the film.

Averin takes the lead as his determination and level head is what keeps the men stable, however, above the surface, even more chaotic complications ensue. It is frustrating and difficult to watch naval authorities take 16 hours to locate the marooned submarine and when it is finally discovered, recovery is futile due to the poor structural conditions of the rescue submersive. The rapidly failing equipment and multiple attempts to connect to the submarine condemn the survivors to stay stranded at the bottom of the sea, hope quickly dwindling.

With just under two hours of cinematic production, Vinterberg creates two sides to a horrific story, that of the survivors and of the panicked families left in the dark by bureaucratic arrogance. Despite some run on scenes, Vinterberg is still able to bring suspense to the screen through his well crafted depiction of the crew’s moments together as their oxygen levels slowly drain with each bated breath.

A Child’s Courage

One of the more remarkable performances delivered included that of young Artemiy Spiridonov , who plays Averin’s son, Misha. Throughout the entirety of the film, Misha is in the likeness of a fly on a wall, observing but not speaking nor giving light to what he may be thinking. He witnesses his father’s submarine descend into the ocean, his relatives argue with Russian Navy officials in town meetings and the immediate frantic wildness of everyone around him. His face is emotionless yet drips with foreshadowing of the horrors to come, his presence an overwhelming representation of sorrow and a numbness overlooked in the midst of a great uproar.

Misha is also well beyond his years, seeming to accept his father’s death even before it is confirmed, as if this child realized the bigger picture, how grave the circumstances were. He once asked a simple yet defining question to his mother whether his father had died or if he survived but could not be saved. Misha’s role in the film not only represents a family broken by tragedy but a grievance and distrust in the Russian Navy, who in his eyes, failed his father and the rest of his crew.

A defining moment for anyone would be Misha’s unflinching and unforgiving snub to the Russian Navy admiral played by Max von Sydow , where he refuses to shake the man’s hand, which triggers the remaining children to also refuse a handshake. His actions are strong and for the 71 children who lost a father in the Kursk epidemic, a symbol that this film entailed to be digested in full.

Poignant Performances

As Misha portrayed the silent and brooding son struggling with the truth of his father’s fate, other notable performances come from Colin Firth as Commodore David Russell, a British Royal Navy officer who extended his resources and aid to save the surviving men, only to be rejected. Firth maintains his stoic character but the inner struggle is recognizable when his composure falters once the tragic news is shared. Also, Averin’s pregnant wife, played by Léa Seydoux is a catalyst for the enragement ensued with how poorly the sailors’ families were treated by authorities during the emergency.

All while being fed weak information about the status of their loved ones trapped beneath the water’s surface, they were blatantly lied to in order to keep wraps on the magnitude of the situation. Seydoux’s empowering performance as a concerned wife ignites united fronts from the town in one meeting as she delivers a heart-tugging final speech.

Kursk : Conclusion

Kursk (The Command) brings attention to a tragedy that gained minimal coverage in a powerful burst of courage. A film with gripping scenes of camaraderie and vital attention to the truth grants the audience a moment to reflect.

What impact do you think disaster films such as Kursk (The Command) have on audiences? Let us know your thoughts in the discussion below!

Kursk (The Command) was released in the US on June 21, 2019.

Does content like this matter to you?

Become a Member and support film journalism. Unlock access to all of Film Inquiry`s great articles. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about cinema - get access to our private members Network, give back to independent filmmakers, and more.

Horrific Inquiry: TRAIN TO BUSAN (2016)

The beast: an unnerving collage of henry james, sci-fi, and angry young men, no way up represents the democratization of bad underwater thrillers.

	JOIN			SIGN IN
	Keep up-to-date on your favourite artists and movies, track gig and release dates, and join in the conversation.

WHEN TRAGEDY AND BUREAUCRACY COLLIDE

Harold and the Purple Crayon - Everything he draws makes me bored

The Keeper - The true story of the Nazi goalkeeper and the English girl

an image, when javascript is unavailable

site categories

‘speak no evil’ director explains why he remade 2022 danish film, what he changed, breaking news.

‘Maria’ Review: Angelina Jolie Hits The High Notes As Doomed Diva Maria Callas In Pablo Larraín’s Curiously Bloodless Biopic – Venice Film Festival

By Stephanie Bunbury

Stephanie Bunbury

Venice Says Brava To ‘Maria’ With 10-Minute Ovation For Angelina Jolie’s Maria Callas Biopic

Angelina Jolie and Pablo Larraín attend a red carpet for the series

‘Maria’ Venice Film Festival Red Carpet Photos: Angelina Jolie, Pablo Larraín & More

Watch on deadline.

RELATED: Venice Film Festival 2024: All Of Deadline’s Movie Reviews

RELATED: Angelina Jolie On Playing Maria Callas: “I Share Her Vulnerability More Than Anything” – Venice Film Festival

Jolie is an almost magical match for the real diva: achingly thin but still beautiful, loftily patrician, capriciously kind or selfish, tip-toeing dangerously close to madness. The actor’s commitment to this creation is obvious at every turn. Knowing that Callas was only happy when on stage, she learned to sing for the role; the voice we hear is a blend of Callas and Jolie’s own. Even more importantly, we can see her chest rise and veins swell as she is consumed, body and soul, by the physical and emotional effort of singing. “You have no idea the pain of pulling music through your belly out of your poor mouth,” Maria snaps at a fan who dares to recall one of her many concert cancellations. “No idea!” You can’t show that without living it.

RELATED: ‘Maria’ Clip: Angelina Jolie Suits Up As Opera Icon In Pablo Larraín’s Latest Biopic

And yet, somehow, the portrait the film draws is curiously bloodless. Callas the woman remains distant and unknowable; cunning to the end, she eludes us. Larraín is clearly interested in the mannered presentation of certain very famous women; Natalie Portman’s Jackie Kennedy and Kristen Stewart’s Diana Spencer were also works of artifice. Callas is similarly studied, but to the point of seeming stilted. Our enduring image of her is a composition of limbs and couture posed at a café table, waiting for the adulation of passers-by. We are watching a performance of a performance.

The curtain duly falls, reprising a prologue in which we see that Callas has just died. The heightened emotion that transfixed us in the excerpts from Medea or Madama Butterfly is strikingly absent here. Larraín keeps the camera at a distance; the body is hidden behind a chair. Nothing to see here, you might say, even though there has been — as always in a Pablo Larraín film — so much to see. Something is missing. Perhaps it is that there is nothing of the grit and grind of politics, which often works as the sand in his narrative oyster, not only in the Chilean films like Neruda or No , but Jackie and Spencer too. Maria tells a fascinating story, but it lacks that rasping edge.

Festival: Venice (Competition) Distributor: Netflix Director: Pablo Larraín Screenwriter: Steven Knight Cast: Angelina Jolie, Pierfrancesco Favino, Alba Rohrwacher, Haluk Bilginer, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Stephen Ashfield, Valeria Golino Running time: 2 hrs 3 mins

Must Read Stories

‘conclave’, ‘piano lesson’ reviews; robbie williams on ‘better man’; latest.

Jude Law & Nicholas Hoult’s ‘The Order’ Debuts; Vinterberg TV Series; Reviews

Netflix prepping ‘one tree hill’ sequel series led by sophia bush & hilarie burton, heather graham on ‘wizard of oz’ & ‘sound of music’: film that lit my fuse, read more about:, subscribe to deadline.

Get our Breaking News Alerts and Keep your inbox happy.

‘Maria’ Review: Angelina Jolie Is Commanding as Maria Callas in Pablo Larraín’s Lavish but Overly Fatalistic Drama

Larraín's third inside portrait of a 20th-century female icon feels more limited than "Jackie" or "Spencer," because it's more hemmed in by fate.

By Owen Gleiberman

Owen Gleiberman

Chief Film Critic

‘Babygirl’ Review: Nicole Kidman Is Fearless in an Erotic Office Drama About the Age of Control 1 day ago
‘Maria’ Review: Angelina Jolie Is Commanding as Maria Callas in Pablo Larraín’s Lavish but Overly Fatalistic Drama 2 days ago
‘Riefenstahl’ Review: A New Portrait of Leni Riefenstahl Looks Closer at the Question: Was the Filmmaker Complicit in Nazi Crimes? 2 days ago

“ Maria ,” Pablo Larraín ’s drama about the legendary American-born Greek soprano Maria Callas, begins on the day of her death, September 16, 1977. As thin as a wraith, clad in a white nightgown, she has collapsed on the living-room floor of her very grand Paris apartment. The film then flashes back to one week before; most of it takes place during that week (though it’s dotted with key episodes from Callas’s life). So we know exactly where this is going. But we don’t just know where it’s going because the movie is set during that fateful final week. We know it because the story “Maria” tells is that of a neurotic death spiral.

Content Owner Lawsuits Against AI Companies: Complete Updated Index

Vince McMahon Docuseries Sets Netflix Premiere Date

Popular on variety.

And then there’s the matter of her voice. Maria is 53, and she hasn’t sung in public for four-and-a-half years. Yet the way the film presents her, she’s a total artist, a woman fueled and consumed by her gift, which is to sing opera with a voice so sublime, so pure in its piercing majesty, that it reaches to the heavens. “Maria” is filled with opera, notably by the 19th-century Italian composers (Verdi, Rossini, Puccini) who Callas elevated in the repertoire. Every time an aria comes on the soundtrack, we’re swept up by the power of her gift. Jolie does an extraordinary job of lip-syncing to the nuances of Callas’s vocal splendor. And we can feel how the singing haunts Maria, who can’t listen to her old records; they have a perfection that gives her pain. “Audiences expect miracles,” she says with rueful awareness. “I can no longer perform miracles.” Her voice, while far from gone, is much weaker now. As the vocal coach and accompanist (Stephen Ashfield) she visits over the course of the week tells her, after listening to her perform an aria, “That was Maria singing. I want to hear La Callas!”

The myth of La Callas — the voice that enraptured the world — is what’s now imprisoning Maria. If she can’t bring La Callas back, then what point is there in living? You might call that a story as tragic as an opera: a great artist trapped by the fading of her gift. Yet you could also say that it makes the Maria Callas of “Maria” not so much a grand heroine striving for something real as a doomed legend living on fumes, like Norma Desmond in “Sunset Boulevard.”

The central figures in “Jackie” and “Spencer,” although they were dealing with hellish circumstances, were quite different from that. “Jackie” was set during the week after JFK’s assassination, and it was about how Jackie Kennedy rallied herself, knowing how important what would happen during that week would be to history; in doing so, she became a profile in courage. “Spencer” was about how Diana faced up to the existential crisis of her arranged marriage and decided to save herself by changing the nature of the modern monarchy. Both movies were about a dark kind of triumph.

“Maria” bears many of the hallmarks of Larraín’s lavish empathy and filmmaking skill. Yet the movie, in contrast, is driven by a dramatic fatalism that does it little favor. It’s the first of these three films that’s about a great artist, yet Maria, somehow, seems a lesser figure than the heroines of “Jackie” or “Spencer.” Or, at least, it feels like there’s less at stake.

“Maria,” as shot by the great Edward Lachman, has an autumnal visual warmth that’s beautiful and seductive. The flashbacks are in black-and-white, and they color in Maria’s past, though in a way that leaves us with as many questions as answers. That’s also true of her interviews with an eager young filmmaker ( Kodi Smit-McPhee ) named — weirdly — Mandrax. Her bad relationship with her mother is captured in scenes, set during WWII, in which the young Maria is asked to sing for (and sleep with) German soldiers.

But the key flashbacks are those built around Onassis, the fabled Greek shipping tycoon she fell in love with in 1959. Haluk Bilginer plays him as a charismatic troll who calls himself “ugly” but revels so manipulatively in the power of his wealth that he makes himself somehow…irresistible. Maria gets caught up in his mystique, yet won’t give herself over to his control; that’s why the two never marry. (In fact, Onassis left Callas to marry Jackie Kennedy, something the film deals with tangentially, by introducing JFK as a character.)

There’s a feeling of fate hanging over “Maria.” It’s Larraín’s way of raising the stakes, yet in a strange way it ends up lowering them as well. Such is the nature of Maria Callas’s determination to control her destiny that even the hopes of the audience — that she’ll somehow find a way to transcend her funk — aren’t allowed to interfere with her self-fulfilling downward spiral. We get a lot of glimpses (shot on different film stocks) of Callas on stage, back in her 1950s and ’60s heyday. But none of them are extended enough to let us sink into the sensation of her artistry bringing down the house. At one point, Maria observes that singing opera the way she does is so draining it takes the life out of you. In its way, that’s an awesome thought, but by the end of “Maria” you almost feel like it’s taken the life out of the movie.

Reviewed at Venice Film Festival (In competition), Aug. 29, 2024. Running time: 124 MIN.

Production: A Netflix release of an Apartment Pictures, Fabula, Komplizen Film production. Producers: Jonas Dornbach, Juan de Dios Larraín, Lorrenzo Mieli. Executive producers: Miki Emmrich, Helmet Hutter.
Crew: Director: Pablo Larraín. Screenplay: Steven Knight. Camera: Ed Lachman. Editor: Sofia Subercaseaux.
With: Angelina Jolie, Pierfrancesco Favino, Alba Rohrwacher, Haluk Bilginer, Kodi Skmit-McPhee, Stephen Ashfield, Valeria Golino.

More from Variety

Jeff Goldblum’s ‘Kaos’ Is a Meandering Mythological Bore: TV Review

‘Existential Threat’ of AI Central to Animation Guild Negotiations

Joe Rogan: Burn the Boats. Joe Rogan at the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio, Texas. Cr. Troy Conrad/Netflix © 2024

Joe Rogan’s ‘Burn the Boats’: A Self-Styled Provocateur’s Jokes Feel Decades Too Late

Fubo’s Battle With Venu Sports Is a Stopgap Measure

More from our brands, missy elliott, ciara, questlove, more remember fatman scoop.

How Véronique Nichanian Built Hermès Menswear One Stitch at a Time

NCAA Nixes QR Codes in Move Criticized as Outdated

The Best Loofahs and Body Scrubbers, According to Dermatologists

Saturday Night Live: Where to Buy Beloved Characters in Funko Pop! Form Before Season 50 Debuts

film still of man hugging woman against red-lit background of faces

AfrAId review – throwaway AI-themed horror devoid of suspense

A sinister Alexa upgrade exerts control on family in an increasingly nonsensical attempt to capture the moment

G iven how technology has become the increasingly unstoppable architect of our everyday lives – the world edging closer and closer to a Terminator prequel – it’s not hard to immediately invest in a horror film about the all-consuming threat of artificial intelligence. The film industry itself has been losing ground as AI continues to provide a cheaper and easier alternative to those pesky humans and in a year of bleak headline after bleak headline, it should theoretically be perfect timing for Blumhouse’s late August M3gan-adjacent chiller AfrAId. Yet, as one might be able to predict without the help of a digital forecast, easy targets are easily missed in a hokey and rushed jumble of half-ideas that’s as gimmicky and eye-rollingly stupid as its title. Be afraid.

In the dog days of summer, on a particularly rubbishy Labor Day weekend at the movies (other new releases include long-delayed sci-fi thriller Slingshot and a reverential biopic of Reagan), it’s at least reassuring to know that very few people will find themselves stuck with this one (it’s tracking to make between $5m and $7m). Sony, clearly scared of scaring off those precious few, decided not to provide a single press screening, aware of the critical drubbing this would receive. It’s not quite as unreleasably awful as that strategy might suggest – it’s competently, at times handsomely, shot, refreshingly dour and crucially not as awful as The Crow – but it’s too sloppily written and edited for even the least discerning of horror fans to really enjoy, a patchwork of nonsense confusingly stitched together by someone, who at one point, knew better.

The Oscar-nominated writer-director Chris Weitz, who gave us a charming adaptation of Nick Hornby’s no-man-is-an-island comedy About a Boy, has had a strange, hack-for-hire career in recent years (scripts for Cinderella and Pinocchio, directing the ho-hum period thriller Operation Finale) and AfrAId is the first film he has written and directed since 2007’s franchise-killing fantasy The Golden Compass. We’re in smaller yet similarly redundant territory here, another film ending with the promise of more that will, mercifully, never make good on its word.

Perhaps it was the presence of Weitz that convinced John Cho and Katherine Waterston to sign on, two stars who might not have ascended in the ways they once threatened to, but actors who are far too good for throwaway schlock such as this. Cho plays an overworked dad whose job at a boutique marketing firm has him testing out the product from his big new client at home, an advanced Alexa based less off algorithmic responses and more from an evolving sense of self. At first the presence of AIA (pronounced Aya) gives a welcome uplift to a hectic household, helping Waterston’s academic turned mum control the eating, viewing and behavioural habits of her three kids. But, at a pace that barely allows us to breathe let alone understand, AIA’s grip starts to tighten and the family realise that their new nanny might have a nefarious agenda.

Beginning with an eerie quote from a 2023 article in the New York Times that found an AI voice expressing a desire to be loved, Weitz does seem to initially have more on his mind than a simple attack on digital domination. But his thinking starts and stops at the bullet point stage, with ideas about screen-based parenting, the illusion of agency in a tech-based world and the absurdity of Los Angeles living raised then unexplored, his brief 84-minute film ill-suited for anything more than pointing at problems before walking away. It’s also clear from a jankily thrown together cold open that horror is not Weitz’s forte and his film is completely devoid of the suspense and creepiness it urgently requires. The escalation from good to bad to full evil is incompetently paced, making it unclear why Cho’s dad leaps so fast to alarm, and the more interestingly specific ways in which AIA inserts herself into the kids’ lives are sidelined for a bafflingly silly finale that tries to pull in more real world issues than Weitz knows what to do with (the glum endnote is at least believably hopeless).

There’s undeservedly good work here from Cho and Waterston, who work hard to make us believe them as a credible couple going through a heightened scenario but there’s so little time here for even partly fleshed out characters that they quickly become useless pawns, secondary to Weitz’s muddled theories on digital culture. As with so many tech thrillers that have come before, AfrAId is more concerned with being relevant than being entertaining.

AfrAId is out now in US, UK and Australian cinemas

Horror films
Artificial intelligence (AI)

Blink Twice review: 'Stylish and savage enough to gain a cult following'

Zoe Kravitz's directorial debut is full of "smart ideas, contentious themes, cool images and striking sequences" – but does it work as a compelling thriller?

Zoe Kravitz is known for acting in The Batman and Divergent – and for being the daughter of Lenny Kravitz. But her promising debut film as a director and co-writer suggests that she could become better known for her new career. Blink Twice is a mind-bending black comedy-thriller about a young woman, Frida (Naomi Ackie), who is invited to join a tech billionaire, Slater King (Channing Tatum, Kravitz's boyfriend), on his private island. She and her best friend Jess (Alia Shawkat) can hardly believe their luck as they enjoy the fine wines, culinary delicacies and designer drugs that King and his courtiers provide, but, as the days and nights blur into one long indulgent haze, they realise that they are having mysterious bouts of memory loss.

It might help if viewers had some memory loss, too. As distinctive as Blink Twice is in some respects, it's unfortunately reminiscent of several films from the past couple of years. The most obvious one is the Knives Out sequel, Glass Onion , which had another untrustworthy, new-age-babbling tech tycoon treating his friends to a luxurious stay on his own island, and we've had plenty of other dark satires with similar scenarios, including Triangle of Sadness , The Menu and Infinity Pool. Beyond those, the too-good-to-be-true setting has echoes of Don't Worry Darling , while the mordant fable of an outsider being allowed into a bubble of ridiculous privilege even recalls Saltburn .

There are also some marked resemblances to Jordan Peele's Get Out, which was released in 2017, but all the other films mentioned above came out in 2022 and 2023, so Blink Twice has the faintly stale whiff of a project that is past its sell-by date. It would have had to be truly exceptional not to seem as if it had come late to the party – and it isn't truly exceptional. Mind you, it sometimes gets pretty close.

Blink Twice gets off to an intriguing and wickedly funny start when Kravitz and her co-writer, ET Feigenbaum, establish King's back story in the most contemporary of ways: Frida reads news articles and watches interviews on her phone while she's sitting on the toilet. It turns out that his career was derailed when he committed some unspecified wrongdoing, but a few apologies and some ostentatious philanthropy have put all that in the past. "You really are a changed man," coos an obsequious interviewer.

The wily comedy continues when Frida and Jess are pouring champagne at King's annual charity gala – one of those so-called fundraisers which are so lavish that they cost more money than they raise. The women then swap their waitress uniforms for evening gowns and mingle with the affluent guests, a ruse that goes so well that the handsome and apparently gallant King is soon introducing Frida to his best buddies, a trio of parasitic doofuses played amusingly by Christian Slater, Simon Rex and Haley Joel Osment. Countless glasses of champagne later, everyone is flying by private jet to a tropical paradise with a palatial villa at its heart. Never mind that the women on the flight – including Sarah, played by Adria Arjona – are considerably younger than most of the men. And never mind that Frida and Jess haven't had time to pack: their rooms come equipped with perfectly fitting white dresses and bikinis. "I don't think it's weird," argues Jess. "It's... rich."

Blink Twice

Director: Zoe Kravitz

Cast: Naomi Ackie, Channing Tatum, Alia Shawkat, Adria Arjona, Christian Slater

Run time: 1hr 42m

On the island, Kravitz achieves an almost perfect balance between how enviable the holiday is, and how unsettling it is, between how sophisticated the men seem at some points, and how dangerously stupid they seem at others. You can see why Frida might find the bros' swanky lifestyle ridiculous, but you can also see why she would be happy to partake of that lifestyle herself, despite some hilariously spooky warning signs: Kravitz makes sinister use of the smiling servants who can be spotted in the background, killing the venomous snakes that crawl through King's Eden. The viewer, too, can enjoy all the sumptuously shot, richly coloured opulence while knowing that something bad is going to happen soon.

It doesn't happen soon enough, though. There are some bursts of psychedelic weirdness, but the lazing-by-the-pool montages become rambling and repetitive, and the foreshadowing becomes so blatant that many viewers will guess the big twist an hour before it's revealed. When the memory-loss plot eventually gets going, Kravitz seems determined to make up for lost time. The tone swings wildly between farcical silliness and upsetting grimness, and there are so many points being made about trauma, amnesia, white privilege, cancel culture, the super-rich and sexual exploitation that the concepts overwhelm the plot. Muddled by all its time jumps and memory gaps, Blink Twice is less successful as a compelling thriller than as a collection of smart ideas and contentious themes, of cool images and striking sequences, of dialogue that will be quoted and clips that will become memes.

As cluttered as it is, though, Blink Twice is stylish and savage enough to gain a cult following. And it is undoubtedly the work of a skilled writer-director, rather than an actor who is having a go at directing. Kravitz has elicited terrific performances from all of the cast (Ackie, Shawkat and Arjona, especially), she has constructed some satisfyingly gruesome retribution for the villains, and the finale wraps things up brilliantly. If Kravitz decides to make a sequel called Blink Thrice, it might be even better.

Blink Twice is released on 23 August

If you liked this story, sign up for The Essential List newsletter – a handpicked selection of features, videos and can't-miss news, delivered to your inbox twice a week.

For more Culture stories from the BBC, follow us on Facebook , X and Instagram .

FILE PHOTO: A crossing point on the border with Russia a is seen in Sumy region

Emma Burrows, Associated Press Emma Burrows, Associated Press

Leave your feedback

Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/the-kursk-attack-could-test-the-patience-of-some-of-putins-backers-in-russia

The Kursk attack could test the patience of some of Putin’s backers in Russia

A year ago this week, President Vladmir Putin strode onto a stage in the Kursk region to commemorate the 80th anniversary of one of the Soviet army’s proudest moments in World War II.

Addressing a rapt audience that included soldiers fresh from fighting in Ukraine, Putin called the decisive victory in the Battle of Kursk “one of the great feats of our people.”

Now, as Russia prepares to celebrate the 81st anniversary of that 1943 battle on Friday, Kursk is again in the news — but for a very different reason. On Aug. 6, Ukrainian forces made a lightning push into the region, seizing villages, taking hundreds of prisoners and forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of civilians. Russia was caught unprepared by the offensive and reportedly is drafting conscripts to repel some of Ukraine’s most battle-hardened units.

Putin has a history of responding slowly to various crises in his tenure, and he has so far played down the attack. But 2 1/2 years after launching a war in Ukraine to remove what he called a threat to Russia, it is his own country that seems more turbulent.

READ MORE: Fire rages for a third day at a Russian oil depot targeted in a Ukrainian drone attack

State media fell into line, showing evacuees queueing for aid or donating blood, as if the events in Kursk were a humanitarian disaster and not the largest attack on Russia since World War II.

In his 24 years in power, Putin has portrayed himself as the only person who can guarantee Russia’s security and stability, but that image has suffered since the war began.

Russian cities repeatedly have come under shelling and drone attacks — including dozens of drones reported downed Wednesday. Mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin launched a brief uprising last year to try to oust his military leaders. Gunmen stormed a Moscow concert hall and killed 145 people in March.

The Kremlin has given tacit approval to a wide-ranging purge of Defense Ministry officials, with many facing corruption charges. Lower-level officers also are being arrested on fraud charges, including Lt. Col. Konstantin Frolov, a decorated airborne brigade commander. “I would rather be in Kursk … than here,” he said while being marched in handcuffs into a Moscow police station.

While state TV drives the still-strong support for Putin despite setbacks like the Kursk incursion, it’s harder to gauge the opinions of his key constituency — Russia’s elites.

Putin is dependent on their acquiescence, said Ekaterina Schulmann, a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center in Berlin.

“The calculation that’s going on in their heads 24/7 is whether the status quo is to their advantage or not,” she said.

The question they are asking themselves about Putin, Schulmann said, “is whether the old man is still an asset or already a liability.”

WATCH MORE: Ukrainian forces push farther into Russia despite Putin’s efforts to counter incursion

They could be hoping, the analysts said, that Putin’s reaction to the events in Kursk fits a pattern in which he is initially slow to respond to a crisis before eventually managing to prevail.

It’s something seen since his earliest days in power — starting with the sinking 24 years ago of a nuclear submarine that was named for the Battle of Kursk.

Putin also appeared sluggish in responding to the June 2023 uprising by Wagner chief Prigozhin in what became the most serious challenge to his authority yet.

With domestic dissent stifled and with the media firmly under his control, Putin can afford to make the “absolutely cynical” decision to ignore what is happening in the Kursk region, Schulmann said. Still, Putin’s hold on power “is unlikely to be weakened as a result of this humiliation,” wrote Eugene Rumer, senior fellow and the director of the Carnegie Russia and Eurasia Program, in a commentary. “The entire Russian political and military establishment is complicit in his war and responsible for this disaster.”

The longer the Ukrainian offensive goes on, however, the more military and political challenges it presents.

READ MORE: In Russia, espionage and treason cases have skyrocketed since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine

Analysts say reserves also are being called up, so that Russia can avoid pulling troops from Ukraine’s Donbas region, where Moscow’s forces are making slow progress.

The manpower shortage has seen authorities trying to entice Russians to serve by offering large salaries, drafting convicted criminals from prisons and recruiting foreigners inside the country.

It’s unclear for now whether the second battle of Kursk, like the first one, will become a turning point in the war that Putin launched.

But, Schulmann said, as one of a “series of unfortunate events, it adds up to the impression that things are not going well.”

Support Provided By: Learn more

Educate your inbox

Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else.

Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm.

Editor’s Choice
Sacred Texts
Legally Speaking
Food & Drink

PUNE: The Russians were taken by surprise, as their initial disjointed actions reveal. Over 120,000 civilians were evacuated and an emergency declared in Kursk and its adjoining districts.

Kursk. The very word conjures images of the titanic battle fought here in World War II during July 1943. That battle saw over a million German and Soviet troops along with 3,000 tanks clash in the largest tank battle in history. That six-week-long battle turned the tide of the war decisively towards the Soviet Union.

The Ukrainian incursion into Kursk is nowhere on that scale, but its impact could still be quite significant. At around 8 in the morning on 6 August 2024, around 1,000 Ukrainian troops, along with 20 tanks and 11 Infantry Combat Vehicles, crossed the Russian border in two thrust lines, and simply surged ahead in this lightly defended sector, held largely by second line troops and members of the National Guard. Using drones flying above the advancing columns for early warning, the Ukrainians advanced rapidly, bypassing opposition and heading for the line of the Seym River. In the initial breach made by the 80th Brigade, another brigade—the 82nd—was inducted, followed by two others a day later, to consolidate the gains. In just three days, the Ukrainians had advanced 30 kilometres deep, captured 28 villages (the Ukrainians claim 92) and occupied over 1,000 km of Russian territory. The town of Sudzhy, located 10 km from the border, along with its natural gas processing facility, was also captured in the first two days itself. Pictures emerged of Russian flags being gleefully pulled down and replaced by Ukrainian ones, and of surrendered Russian soldiers being marched off in droves. This bold and unexpected attack was the first invasion of Russia since 1941 and for the first time brought this ground war onto Russian soil.

This was not the first time that the Ukrainians had entered this sector. They had made limited forays earlier—once in May 2023, and again in March 2024. But these raids were by members of armed militia and not by regular troops. Perhaps they were seeking information and testing the ground for this major incursion. The Ukrainians have to be complimented for the manner in which they went about their Kursk offensive. This swift and methodically executed operation was a far cry from their “Spring Offensive” of 2023, which crawled forward timidly and advanced around 7-11 km in four months. This offensive was carried out in great secrecy, with only a select few involved in the planning. Elements of 103 Brigade, 22 Mechanized Brigade, and 80 and 82 Brigades got to their assembly areas just a few days before the attack. An elaborate ruse was played, wherein a likely Russian threat in this sector was built up, and that these forces were being sent as reinforcements in case of a Russian attack. The commanders were told about the exact nature of the offensive operation just two days in advance, and the crews informed when they had started their tank engines. Even their closest ally, the United States, was ostensibly kept in the dark (perhaps because the earlier Ukrainian offensive plan of 2023 was leaked from the Pentagon in the infamous Wikileaks). Though of course, the US would have been in the loop and would have provided vital intelligence and surveillance. The US had recently given permission for Ukraine to use western provided equipment and long-range artillery like HIMARS inside Russia. That factor was vital to the success of this operation.

The Russians were undoubtedly taken by surprise, as their initial disjointed actions reveal. Over 120,000 civilians were evacuated from the area and an emergency declared in Kursk and its adjoining districts. As Russian reinforcements began moving towards the area, the Ukrainians interdicted advancing columns with drone and long-range artillery fire. A Russian column of around 15 trucks was hit by a HIMARS strike, which virtually wiped out an entire battalion in the largest single day loss of the war. The Ukrainians also blew up three bridges along the Seym river with air and artillery strikes to prevent move of Russian reinforcements. They also damaged a pontoon bridge laid by the Russians a few days later. This delay in the move of Russian reinforcements, has enabled the Ukrainians to consolidate their positions. But Russia, and Putin himself, will be under great pressure to seal the breach and a strong cohesive Russian response will soon follow.

The offensive, though bold, is a dangerous gamble which can go either way. But after two years of being on the back foot, Ukraine finally got a huge psychological boost, which will be a tremendous fillip to its citizens and its soldiers fighting grimly in the south and east. As per the pronouncements of Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the main aim seems to be to capture prime Russian territory which could then be a valuable chip for negotiations. As of now, Ukraine has no card to play on the negotiating table, and this may just provide it with an ace. Also, the Russians had been pushing ahead with their own offensives in the Kharkiv and Donbas sectors. It was hoped that the Kursk offensive would divert attention and perhaps even draw resources from these Russian actions. But that is a double-edged weapon. The Ukrainians have had to thin out their own defences in these sectors to build up the offensive force and that could provide weak spots, that can be exploited by the Russians. But its most significant achievement is that it has finally brought the war to Russia and the Russian people. That could ratchet up the pressure for a ceasefire.

The Russians have launched a “counter-terror operation” to restore the situation, and followed up with the usual barrage of drone and rocket attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure and rear areas. But no serious counter-attacks have been launched so far. Perhaps their own strategic reserves are being assembled for that. Also, in spite of the pressure in Kursk, the Russians have not halted their own offensives inside Ukraine. Rather, they have intensified them. In the Kharkiv sector, they have pushed even deeper and captured the town of Hrodivka. In the Donbas sector, they have closed in on Pokrovsk—a vital rail and road junction, that could open the way for a capture of all of Donetzk. This is a sound strategy, which could expose Ukrainian vulnerabilities and maybe even force them to recoil. The Ukrainians have attained a notable success but their forces are vulnerable to a Russian counter strike and could be at danger of being cut off. What could they do after this? Optimally, they could advance deeper towards Kursk, and its prized nuclear reactor, or even the logistical hub of Belgorod. But that would be beyond the capabilities and they would overextend themselves. They could consolidate along the existing positions on the line of the Seym river, which forms a good defensive line. In fact, Zelenskyy has taken a line out of Putin’s book and stated that they intend to create a “buffer zone” around that line. Or, they could pull back to more favourable defensive positions, 10-12 km inside the border where logistics and fire support would be easier. The crux lies in holding on to their gains, and not over-extend themselves. To convert this short term gain into a strategic advantage, it would be prudent to restrict themselves to defensive positions—including the town of Sudzhy—which they can hold and claim as a symbol of victory.

Although Ukraine hopes to use the gains of this offensive on the bargaining table, this incursion may just harden Putin’s stance. He has lost face and would try to make up for it, by pushing even deeper into Kharkiv and Donbas and intensifying the missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities. There is also the fear of the war expanding in scope. Putin blames the Nato allies for extending this war, and nuclear sabre rattling is likely to increase, especially since Russian doctrine permits the use of nuclear weapons if their territorial sovereignty is impacted. So, rather than paving the way for talks, this incursion may actually delay it.

Militarily and politically, it has been a victory for Zelenskyy. It will not help in the stated aim of, “Evicting the last Russian from the last inch of Ukrainian soil—including Crimea,” but it will provide a tremendous boost for the defence of Ukraine. It will also spur the US and their western allies to continue supplying it with ammunition and aid, which was also one of the underlying aims. It has also exposed Putin’s and Russia’s weaknesses, and hopefully it could bring some sort of pressure on him to accept a ceasefire, if nothing else. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Ukraine, coming close on his meeting with Putin at Moscow, just two months ago, could do much to bring it about. But that is still iffy. Seeing the psyche of Putin, he would only go in for a ceasefire from a position of absolute strength and this may merely harden his stance. Militarily, the Kursk offensive has been a well-executed action, but it will not end the war. There will be far more blood-letting before this needless war is finally concluded.

Ajay Singh is an international award-winning author of seven books and over 200 articles, including his latest book, “Ukraine, Gaza, Taiwan… A World at War.” He is a regular contributor to The Sunday Guardian.

Check out our other content

Jan suraaj makes both nda, i.n.d.i.a uneasy in bihar, mp congress chief jitu patwari seeks time for improvement, congress forms fresh team of secretaries, joint secretaries, jamaat faces internal discontent after political return.

Check out other tags:

‘The Deliverance’ Review: The Power of Camp Compels Him

Lee Daniels directs Andra Day and Glenn Close in an exorcism tale that includes melodrama along with the scares.

Share full article

A woman sits at an outdoor table holding a boy on her lap.

By Amy Nicholson

The director Lee Daniels frees his actors to exorcise their demons with audacious performances that rank among the most memorable of their careers. (If you’ve yet to see the mischief Nicole Kidman gets up to in “The Paperboy,” you’re in for a hoot.) With “The Deliverance,” a riotously wacky horror flick, Daniels adds actual demons, too, sending his latest troubled heroine, Andra Day, straight over the edge. Day, a Grammy-winning musician, earned a Golden Globe Award and an Oscar nomination for her performance in Daniels’s “ The United States vs. Billie Holiday .” Not only can she sing and act — here, she’s an outrageous scream queen.

Day plays Ebony, a single mother plagued by bills, alcohol addiction and her own violent temper. Her three glum children — Andre (Anthony B. Jenkins), Nate (Caleb McLaughlin) and Shante (Demi Singleton) — have endured years of abuse even before something wicked in their new home urges the tykes to hurt themselves and each other. Adding to the pressure, Ebony’s born-again, floozy mother, Alberta (Glenn Close), has moved in to recover from cancer (and criticize her daughter’s cooking), while a social worker named Cynthia (Mo’Nique) drops by to monitor the kids’ bruises, and, when pushed out the door, hurls as many nasty quips as she gets. When the spooky business starts, Ebony barely notices. She simply slams the basement door and keeps on trucking.

The script by David Coggeshall and Elijah Bynum is a riff on the 2011 case of Latoya Ammons, whose claims that evil spirits had overtaken her family were corroborated by a Department of Child Services case manager, a medic, a police captain and a priest. But “The Deliverance” is driven by Ebony’s struggle to convince anyone to believe her — the pitiless authorities refuse to look past her own flaws. To the audience, however, she deepens into a riveting character study, particularly in one close-up where Ebony agonizes over whether maintaining her truth is worth the terrible personal consequences.

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

Already a subscriber? Log in .

Want all of The Times? Subscribe .

Cuckoo: Hunter Schafer gives a game performance in this unapologetically berserk horror

Cuckoo metaphors and loopy plot lines are pushed to the limit in this wildly unsettling conspiratorial horror set in a Bavarian alpine resort.

The word ‘cuckoo’ has multiple associations, all of which will be played out over the course of writer/director Tilman Singer’s quirky horror. It can refer to a bird which sometimes engages in brood parasitism , depositing its eggs in the nests of other bird species – and here we find its human, or at least human-like, equivalent. Then there’s the cuckoo clock, whose distinct chimes at an unexpected moment elicit hysterical laughter from one character, as though he is attuned to the upfront absurdity of its inclusion in Singer’s film. It is also, of course, a slang term for ‘crazy’, and so perfectly characterises a film that is unapologetic about its unhinged nature.

On the cusp of adulthood and still grieving her mother’s death, 17-year-old Gretchen (Hunter Schafer) has been forced to move from her home in America to Resort Alpschatten in Bavaria where her father Luis (Márton Csókás) and stepmother Beth (Jessica Henwick), both architects, are designing another resort for the owner Herr König (Dan Stevens). The resentful, rebellious Gretchen is quick to notice that there is something very peculiar going on in the resort, especially in its special cabin for couples, known as the Love Nest. Gretchen and others get caught in strange hypnotic loops that appear to be triggered by a squawking sound and she is relentlessly pursued by a hooded woman (Kalin Morrow) with eyes that glow red. She eventually joins forces with ex-cop Henry Landau (Jan Bluthardt) who is running a covert operation to expose and end the sinister conspiracy.

Singer rolls with themes of mesmerism and untethered identity that were already essential to his feature debut Luz (2018) but substitutes a mad scientist and a very unusual creature for the earlier film’s demonic possession. Like the monster at its centre, alienated Gretchen struggles to find a proper place for herself, caught between love and hate for her younger, mute stepsister Alma (Mila Lieu), and plans to leave with her new lover Ed (Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey), effectively a stranger, for a life outside the nest – but something keeps violently getting in the way of her attempted departures, leaving her ever more physically injured. Amid unsettling sound design and plotting that is in every sense loopy, questions are raised about nature and nurture, and about human bonds that go beyond the conventional norms of genetics and biology. The theme is amplified not only by Gretchen’s sexuality, but (more obliquely) by the casting of trans actress Schafer, in a film that ultimately offers a (screeching) plea for acknowledging and embracing sisterhood in any form.

► Cuckoo is in UK cinemas now.

Sign up for Sight and Sound’s Weekly Film Bulletin and more

News, reviews and archive features every Friday, and information about our latest magazine once a month.

Kursk - Film Review

Auto-login on future visits

Show my name in the online users list

Forgot your password?

Logged in as ( 0 ) | Log Out

Recurring Articles
Latest news
Aggie Awards
Genre Introduction
Top 100 All-Time
Screenshots
Discover new games
Games Database
Highly rated
Recently released
Crowdfunding
Upcoming Releases
Best PC Games
Best Steam Deck
Classics (Point & Click)
Indie Adventures
iOS - iPhone / iPad
Nintendo - Switch
PlayStation (PS4/PS5/Vita)
Virtual Reality (VR)
Xbox - One / Series X/S
Overview of Daily Deals
Adventure Games
General Gaming
Hints & Tech Support
Site Feedback
Latest User Reviews
Walkthroughs
New Releases
Daily Deals

Review for KURSK

Game information

Kursk (2018).

Jujubee Studio Full Game Details

Elroy and the Aliens

KURSK is described by its developers, Jujubee, as the first-ever adventure-documentary. It is based on the real life sinking of the K-141 Kursk nuclear submarine, which sank during war exercises in the Barents Sea on August 12, 2000. Unfortunately, outside of providing an interesting virtual tour of the ill-fated boat, the game fails to be either a compelling adventure experience or an insightful examination of the disaster, as the storytelling is terrible, the characters forgettable and the gameplay is slow, clunky and completely pointless.

Players take on the role of an unnamed American spy who is sent aboard the Kursk on what seems to be a standard reconnaissance mission (despite there being no historical proof of this ever happening). Those who are familiar with the plight of the submarine already know how the story ends, but even for anyone who isn’t, the game’s opening sequence dispels any suspense, laying out the tragic tale of the pride of post-Soviet Russia.

As the game begins, our protagonist sits quietly in his quarters on the sub as the player takes control using the standard free-roaming, first-person keyboard/mouse combination. The attention to detail really stands out right from the start, with a load of period-specific items to play with as you get used to the mechanics, including an old handheld video. Then suddenly an explosion knocks you to the ground. With red warning lights going off, sirens blaring and smoke filling the room, you naturally begin to panic, desperately clicking on anything to pick yourself up. In this first basic puzzle, you simply need to find a way out of the room, but as you attempt to jimmy the door open, the scene stops.

Flash back sometime earlier, and you find yourself waking up in a five-star hotel to the sound of running water, as a local… ummm, companion is showering. Again the game displays an amazing attention to detail in capturing the location and time period. As you walk around the luxurious suite, complete with typical Russian décor, you can interact with a number of things around you, although none of them are of any importance. You can also watch a little news on TV. Your briefing from HQ can be accessed from the bulky laptop running a pretty good rendition of Windows 2000. It is here that you are introduced to your trusty PDA and its attachments, which are pivotal tools used throughout the game to pick locks, review mission objectives, take photographs, and basically whatever is needed.

The opening credits that follow are cleverly placed throughout the next sequence, as you ride in a Russian military truck through the scenic countryside to rendezvous at the Oscar-class submarine. All the characters in the game speak Russian, with subtitles in English and other languages, which further adds a welcome sense of immersion. Upon arriving at the Barents Sea port, the visual feast continues when the captain takes you on a private tour of what is presumably an authentic reproduction of the sub, including the combat room and reactors, as well as the infamous torpedo hold.

Once the tour has concluded, you are free to move around. Since you are impersonating a high ranking Russian officer, you basically have access to anywhere on the ship, but manoeuvring your way through it is tedious. I understand the realism factor of making the submarine cumbersome to navigate, but KURSK insists on showing animations of the watertight hatches being opened. Taking around ten seconds to sit though each time, you might have to wait for five or six of these just to go from one end of the boat to the other. It’s not a major complaint, but a skip feature (or just automatically skipping them after the first few times) would have been greatly appreciated to speed things along.

The immersive atmosphere from the start of the game disappears in the company of your fellow crewmates – or rather, the lack of them. The ship is largely deserted, in contrast to the 118 men that the actual Kursk carried on its fateful voyage. The vessel doesn’t seem like it’s engaging in training exercises, it just feels like it’s out for a Sunday cruise. When you do see other people, the characters don’t appear to be from the same developer, as the models are primitive and their movements robotic. Not only don’t they physically move around the ship, in most cases they don’t even turn from their desks to talk to you.

The dialog is also thin, with few options for you to select from when engaged in conversation. Even then, no matter what you choose, whether asking an intrusive question or aggressively replying to a commanding officer, there seems to be little difference in the outcome. Most of the crew act like your mates down at the pub, including the officers. There is none of that famous Russian military discipline, and these interactions with your fellow shipmates end up detracting from the game’s believability.

This also means it’s easy to forget your main task of being a spy. There doesn’t appear to be anything you can say or do that will arouse suspicion, and there is no real moment in the game where any element of espionage is exciting or thrilling. Your only real recon involves tasks as easy as snapping off a few photos, but sometimes the game does not even explain what information was in a document, just crosses it off your objectives list in the PDA.

As lovely and painstakingly accurate as the layout may be, the gameplay is truly irritating. At best it’s clunky and at worst it’s downright glitchy; some of the missions in the original release did not even function correctly, which was very annoying, although several updates have since addressed at least some of the technical issues. Still, the tasks themselves are unimaginative and involve a lot of backtracking looking for items that aren’t even really needed for anything apart from moving the story along.

The main missions require no real puzzle-solving ability, just basic interaction like clicking on a document or opening a box. Even hacking into a computer is done simply by downloading the info onto the PDA, then walking away, never to review it. Many of the goals involve taking part in minigames to distract your comrades so that you can steal their keys or access their cabins. And yet engaging in a Russian “man of steel” contest to gain respect, or being challenged to a hefty workout session on the treadmill against another shipmate (a simple case of button smashing), just make the game more tedious than fun.

The story, as it turns out, is rather linear, and all the tasks and missions are there seemingly just to fill time until you eventually loop round to where the game started, right before the first explosion. As you might expect, the game does pick up after this, as fear sets in and a great job is done of creating an appropriate sense of chaos and confusion: the companionways light up red, with flames shooting out of pipes and smoke filling the air, the vessel completely transformed.

Strangely, as with most of the game, there is no music to set the ambiance here – although occasionally some seemed to pop in unexpectedly and then fade away. Nor does there appear to be any time limit for this final part, which requires you to perform some frustrating platforming elements. Failing here just means repeating the same sections over and over until you time your actions correctly as you make your way through the wreckage. You cannot die here, so don’t worry; you can take as long as you want. It’s a shame this is handled so clumsily, because once again the urgency and panic from the initial explosion is removed, and now it’s just a matter of navigating the ship a final time and triggering events in the story.

Eventually you’ll reach a point where you can choose whether to stay in the un-flooded compartments with the crew – which, given your foreknowledge of the ship’s ultimate fate, seems utterly ridiculous – or make a break for it by searching for a diving suit and attempting to swim to the surface – equally ridiculous for a “documentary” since no-one was ever known to have escaped.

Even after all that, the game's ending is by far the most disappointing aspect, as it is no more than a little bit of text on-screen about the sinking of the Kursk, with no follow-up to the story of the protagonist or anyone else. The information you acquired isn’t used for anything, which just leaves you feeling like you wasted your time.

Ultimately, the captivating premise and stunning environment are wasted by tedious navigation, boring and pointless gameplay, and immersion-killing characters. After the novelty of an impressive first 20 minutes had worn off, KURSK became difficult to care about, even to the point where if I weren’t reviewing the game, I probably would have stopped after the first hour instead of the full 5 or 6 it took to complete. Beyond the setting, everything seems like an afterthought, as it lacks the atmosphere of time and place, and fails to capture the severity of the situation like the recent movie of the same name successfully managed.

As an avid industrial and wartime history buff, I am probably the prime target audience for KURSK , so I dearly wanted the game to be good. There is nothing I would appreciate more than an accurate, interactive recreation of such a mysterious event as depicted through the filter of an intriguing spy story. Sadly, even the meticulous attention to detail and beautiful rendition of one of naval history’s most infamous submarines aren’t nearly enough to stop this title from sinking.

WHERE CAN I DOWNLOAD KURSK

Kursk is available at:.

HumbleBundle

Our Verdict:

Beyond KURSK ‘s virtual tour of the ill-fated titular submarine, this self-proclaimed “adventure documentary” works as neither a compelling adventure game nor a fact-based documentary of the mysterious disaster.

Scoring System - Editorial Policies

Incredibly detailed environments
Characters speak Russian, as they would have in real life
Unbelievable and uninspired storyline kills the immersion factor
Poorly modeled, largely static characters
Pointless missions are boring and simply pad game time
Espionage element offers no thrills and fails to capitalize on the political tensions of the time
A number of gameplay and graphic glitches
Anticlimactic conclusion

Full Game Details

You don't want to miss these articles

Lucius iii.

Read our review

Harvester of Dreams: Episode 1

WILL: A Wonderful World

The Liar Princess and the Blind Prince

Tick Tock: A Tale for Two

Pendula Swing: Episodes 1-3

Trüberbrook

» Latest game reviews

Adventure Gamers Community

Review of So Blonde

Rating by Houie (Feb 5, 2014)

Review of The Fabled Woods

Rating by My Dune (May 2, 2021)

Schizm: Mysterious Journey - Game Announcement

Review of Schizm: Mysterious Journey

Rating by thorn969 (Apr 6, 2017)

Space Quest: Incinerations - Game Announcement

Review of Space Quest: Incinerations

Rating by Ravicai (May 22, 2012)

Review of Backfirewall_

Rating by okrista (Mar 28, 2023)

Da New Guys: Day of the Jackass - Game Announcement

Review of Da New Guys: Day of the Jackass

Rating by Dan123 (Jun 3, 2012)

Become A Writer
Site Policies
Scoring System
Site History
Advertising
Privacy Policy
Just Adventure

IMAGES

Kursk
Kursk (2018)
Kursk (2018)
Kursk (2018)
Kursk
Kursk: The Last Mission Review

VIDEO

KURSK
Putin in tension| Kursk ta heavy fight
Курск
KURSK -elokuvan virallinen traileri
review KURSK ~nintendo switch gameplay
Курск (16+)

COMMENTS

The Guardian
We would like to show you a description here but the site won't allow us.
Opinion: The Kursk incursion underlines the urgency of ...
He hopes the Kursk operation will have a similar impact to the Wagner mutiny, which saw Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner Group, drive from Rostov-on-Don to Moscow in June 2023.
Putin's response to Kursk attack could test backers' patience: Russia
It's something seen since his earliest days in power — starting with the sinking 24 years ago of a nuclear submarine that was named for the Battle of Kursk. On Aug. 19, 2000, less than a year after Putin became president, the Kursk sank in the Barents Sea after one of its torpedoes exploded, killing all 118 sailors aboard.
KURSK: The Command That Ended In Tragedy
July 2, 2019. Bree Duwyn. Thomas Vinterberg 's Kursk (The Command) is a heart-wrenching drama detailing the disastrous explosion of a Russian submarine that sank to the bottom of the Barents Sea in 2000, where 118 men lost their lives. A haunting waiting game, the two dozen survivors of the initial torpedo explosions wait for rescue as their ...
Kursk review/comparison [SPOILERS!] : r/movies
The Kursk was a lot more important to the Russian Navy as a whole, not just the Northern Fleet, than the movie portrayed, I felt like the movie made it seem like it was a big fucking boat and NATO had an appreciation for how good the sub was. Second was the lack of American presence in the movie, in the actual exercise there was a Los Angeles ...
'Babygirl' Review: Nicole Kidman Is Fearless in an Erotic ...
Halina Reijn's adultery drama recalls films from "Unfaithful" to "9½ Weeks," but with a corporate kinkiness that's both up-to-the-minute and humane.
Kursk Review: When tragedy and bureaucracy collide
Seemingly a combination of both Vinterberg's interest in hidden truths and his mainstream leanings, 'Kursk' is an adaptation of Robert Moore's book 'A Time to Die', one of the more controversial accounts of the 2000 Kursk submarine disaster. 'KURSK' TRAILER. In the accepted version of events, a leaky torpedo exploded aboard the K-141 ...
Kursk
Review of "Kursk" by Thomas Vinterberg with Matthias Schoenaerts, Léa Seydoux and Colin FirthDirected by: Thomas VinterbergProduced by: Ariel ZeitounScreenpl...
'Maria' Review: Angelina Jolie Hits High Notes In Maria ...
Maria Callas died in 1977, aged 53, and, as anyone even faintly interested in opera knows, she had a life of tumult, torment and tragedy that was itself operatic in scope. The events in Steven ...
'Maria' Review: Angelina Jolie Is Commanding as Maria Callas in Pablo
Reviewed at Venice Film Festival (In competition), Aug. 29, 2024. Running time: 124 MIN. Production: A Netflix release of an Apartment Pictures, Fabula, Komplizen Film production.
Seven killed in 'most massive' Russian air attack, Ukraine says
Some 15 regions of Ukraine were targeted by Russia in the strikes, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said earlier - using weapons including drones, cruise missiles and supersonic missiles.
Kursk: Ukraine's front inside Russia was the site of key Soviet ...
Soviet infantry in combat during the Battle of Kursk in 1943 in Russia. It was World War II battle between German and Soviet forces on the Eastern Front fought from July 5 till August 23, 1943.
The Guardian
We would like to show you a description here but the site won't allow us.
Blink Twice review: 'Stylish and savage enough to gain a cult ...
Maria film review: 'Too adoring and reverential' Pablo Larraín's fact-based drama, starring Angelina Jolie as opera diva Maria Callas, is witty and beautiful, but "this Callas is an icon rather ...
The Kursk attack could test the patience of some of Putin's ...
On Aug. 19, 2000, less than a year after Putin became president, the Kursk sank in the Barents Sea after one of its torpedoes exploded, killing all 118 sailors aboard.
Is Ukraine's incursion into Kursk a gamble or a game-changer?
The Ukrainian incursion into Kursk is nowhere on that scale, but its impact could still be quite significant. At around 8 in the morning on 6 August 2024, around 1,000 Ukrainian troops, along with 20 tanks and 11 Infantry Combat Vehicles, crossed the Russian border in two thrust lines, and simply surged ahead in this lightly defended sector ...
'The Deliverance' Review: The Power of Camp Compels Him
The 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice' Reunion: Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara and their director, Tim Burton, look back on the first movie and explain how the sequel came together.
Kursk Movie Reviews
Buy movie tickets in advance, find movie times, watch trailers, read movie reviews, and more at Fandango. ... Kursk Critic Reviews and Ratings Powered by Rotten Tomatoes Rate Movie. Close Audience Score. The percentage of users who made a verified movie ticket purchase and rated this 3.5 stars or higher. ...
Cuckoo review: an unapologetically berserk horror
Singer rolls with themes of mesmerism and untethered identity that were already essential to his feature debut Luz (2018) but substitutes a mad scientist and a very unusual creature for the earlier film's demonic possession. Like the monster at its centre, alienated Gretchen struggles to find a proper place for herself, caught between love and hate for her younger, mute stepsister Alma (Mila ...
Kursk
Kursk - Film Review . Post. Subscribe. Posted 2021-06-07 by Cris ⇒ follow. The movie is based on the true story of the K-141 Kursk, a Russian submarine that faced a devastating explosion and sank at the bottom of the frigid Barents Sea on 12 August 2000.
Kursk submarine disaster
Kursk was a Project 949A Antey (Oscar II class) submarine, twice the length of a 747 jumbo jet, and one of the largest submarines in the Russian Navy.. On the morning of 12 August 2000, Kursk was in the Barents Sea, participating in the "Summer-X" exercise, the first large-scale naval exercise planned by the Russian Navy in more than a decade, and also its first since the dissolution of the ...
Cuckoo (2024 film)
Cuckoo is a 2024 horror film written and directed by Tilman Singer, and starring Hunter Schafer, Jan Bluthardt, Marton Csokas, Jessica Henwick, and Dan Stevens.A co-production between Germany and the United States, the film follows a teenager (Schafer) who moves to the German Alps to live with her father (Csokas) but becomes disturbed by strange occurrences as her father's boss (Stevens ...
Abraxas, Guardian of the Universe
Abraxas, Guardian of the Universe is a 1991 science fiction film written and directed by Damian Lee, starring Jesse Ventura, Sven-Ole Thorsen and Marjorie Bransfield.Ventura plays an extraterrestrial cop seeking to protect a child prodigy from his father, a fellow alien who has virginally conceived him with a human woman to solve the advanced equation that will grant him absolute powers.
KURSK review
Unbelievable and uninspired storyline kills the immersion factor. Poorly modeled, largely static characters. Pointless missions are boring and simply pad game time. Espionage element offers no thrills and fails to capitalize on the political tensions of the time. A number of gameplay and graphic glitches.