Film: The Return

Screening of films will be conducted at Changampuzha Samskarika Kendram, Edappally, Kochi (Kerala, India) on 17, 18 and 19 August 2016 as part of their monthly programmes . The films Scent of a Woman, The Return and Lumumba will be screened on these days.

18 Aug 2016: Film: The Return (Russian: Возвращение, Vozvrashcheniye)
Venue:  Changampuzha Samskarika Kendram, Changampuzha Park, Edapally, Kochi / Ernakulam , Kerala (India)

Details & Plot of the film : The Return

The Return is a 2003 Russian drama film directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev and released internationally in 2004.

It tells the story of two Russian boys whose father suddenly returns home after a 12-year absence. He takes the boys on a holiday to a remote island on a lake that turns into a test of manhood of almost mythic proportions. It won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.

In contemporary Russia, Ivan and his older brother Andrei have grown a deep attachment to each other to make up for their fatherless childhood. Both their mother and grandmother live with them. After running home after a fight with each other, the boys are shocked to discover their father has returned after a 12-year absence. With their mother's uneasy blessing, Ivan and Andrei set out on what they believe will be a simple fishing vacation with him.

Andrei is delighted to be reunited with their father and Ivan is apprehensive towards the man whom they know only from a faded photograph.

At first, both brothers are pleased with the prospect of an exciting adventure, but they soon strain under the weight of their father's awkward and increasingly brutal efforts to make up for the missing decade. Ivan and Andrei find themselves alternately tested, rescued, scolded, mentored, scrutinized, and ignored by the man. Andrei seems to look up to his father while Ivan remains stubbornly defensive.

The film ends with still images from their journey.

The Return was filmed on and around Lake Ladoga and the Gulf of Finland. The budget of the film remains a secret, though in an interview the director and the producer hinted that it was well below $500,000. The film premiered in Russia on 16 October 2003, with the worldwide premiere taking place on 31 October 2003.