Lyubovnik

One rarely sees such an unsentimental yet hopelessly sad film full of anger and bitterness. The loss of a loved one usually hurts. The loss of illusions hurts twice as much. The existing certainties crumble, and the specter of a rival enters the widower's life, a rival against whom victory is impossible and who forces the protagonist to reconsider his view of his previous partnership. The illusion of a functional bourgeois family becomes a strange triangle, missing one side. When there is no escape from the hopeless reality of life into a world of comforting memories, the future loses its meaning as well. The Lover is an intimate psychological drama that works exceptionally well, relying on very little - just two outstanding actors and the grungy reality of a Russian metropolis full of neglected apartment buildings with decaying interiors. Overall impression: 90%. (06.02.2015)

An impressive connection between two men and one woman, who fought for her favor both during her life and after her death. A brilliantly acted open and hidden battle for the love of a dead woman, sometimes dominated by the lover, sometimes by the husband, leading to a painful realization that neither of them is spared. It is indeed better to let the dead rest in peace... (09.04.2012)