|
Nirvana review
:. Director: Igor Voloshin
:. Starring: Olga Sutulova, Mariya Shalayeva
:. Running Time: 1:33
:. Year: 2008
:. Country: Russia
|
In an era where the Suicide Girls look — a mix of tattoos, piercings and naughtiness — has become a — debatable — symbol of female empowerment, here comes a Russian film fully embracing that aesthetic.
Following two punksters as they try to save a male friend from a ruthless drug dealer to whom he owes money, Nirvana can easily be labeled as a feminist picture, portraying women as strong beings and men as sneaky cowards.
The film even looks like a glossy women's magazine, offering a succession of glamorized shots that are clearly staged like a fashion shoot. Nirvana aims at celebrating the beauty of women, along with their strength, which obviously isn't a bad thing, except that this flag-waving feminism doesn't seem to go anywhere here.
Rather than focusing on its message and exploring punk as a vehicle for feminism and as a Russian subculture, the film prefers to follow a route inherent to the modern gangster genre, most particularly borrowing from Guy Ritchie's cinema (Rocknrolla) by blending sex, drugs and rock n roll with a sense of hysteria. Director Igor Voloshin's vision of this cyber-punk underworld also borrows heavily from Blade Runner, turning his sense of the avant-garde into retro-nostalgia.
Not that Nirvana is that bad. It's a somewhat entertaining film with great eye candy, an enveloping atmosphere and a strong lead (Olga Sutulova) but, rather than looking edgy, Nirvana ends up fading in its superficiality, as the form of this film clearly neutralizes any aspiration its content might have. Even disappointing for fans of the kitsch cyberpunk band Sigue Sigue Sputnik like me, it's doubtful that Nirvana will find appeal among film-goers, except for a few punk-wannabee-youngsters in search of cold exotic thrills.
Fred Thom
 Movie Reviews: Foreign Films
Reviews 2012 - present
Reviews 1998 - 2012
|
|
