Top 200 Most Anticipated Films for 2014: #4. Andrei Zvyagintsev’s Leviathan

Leviathan

Director: Andrei Zvyagintsev
Writers: Andrei Zvyagintsev and Oleg Nevin
Producer(s): NON-STOP PRODUCTION
U.S. Distributor: Rights Available
Cast: Elena Lyadova, Alexei Serebryakov, Vladimir Vdovichenkov, Roman Madyanov

With a trio of deliriously exciting titles under his belt, the 2011 drama Elena (world premiere coverage) saw a resurgence in critical appreciation for one of the most exciting directors working in Russia over the past decade, Andrei Zvyagintsev. A socially conscious drama that sounds like highbrow science fiction, the director returns with screenwriter Oleg Nevin, who penned both Elena and The Banishment (2007). Zvyagintsev gave a rare interview in the earlier part of 2013 on the project, so, with a little luck, perhaps this will be ready in time for Cannes.

Gist: Described as a drama that that melts into tragedy as it depicts current day social problems, this a much more ambitious project than his last film, which also unites him with actress Elena Lyadova. A large cast, which is comprised of six or seven main characters, details have been kept to a minimum, but deals with human insecurity in a “new country” which gradually unwinds to a mythological scale concerning the human condition on earth entirely.

Release Date: Shooting took place in August of last year, so all arrows point once again to a Cannes Film Festival premiere and fest organizers won’t make the error of placing it in the Un Certain Regard section but rather, the Main Comp (which was the case for Elena).

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