Atlantis

Atlantis takes place in a Ukraine which is thoroughly shattered after an extensive war against Russia. The year is 2025, and war veteran Sergiy has lost his family, and any hope for a better future, in the war. He spends his days working at a steel mill and practicing shooting with his friend Ivan, who struggles with PTSD. Their apathetic life is turned upside down when the factory is closed down, and Sergiy finds a new job bringing clean water to the areas troubled by pollution due to the war. Here he meets Katya, who introduces him to the organization «Black Tulips». Their volunteers are digging up and identifying bodies from the war.

Lingering, dystopian, and gloomy are three keywords that describe Valentyn Vasyanovych’s film Atlantis. These may not be the most obvious selling points, but Atlantis is also powerful in its portrayal of a post-war country in economic and moral ruin. Visually striking tableaus and interpersonal relationships containing small glimpses of hope work as counterparts to the darkness; the result is an outstanding meditation on the aftermath of war.

Johanne Svendsen Rognlien

Read Montages' review of Atlantis here (in Norwegian).

Director

Valentyn Vasyanovych (b. 1971) is from Ukraine and has worked as a director and producer for many years. He is educated as a cinematographer and director from the university in Karpenko-Kary, and later the Andrzej Wajda film school in Poland. Vasyanovych’s previous works include Zvychayna sprava (2012), Kredens (2013) and Riven chornoho (2017). Atlantis won the Horizon-prize during Venice Film Festival in 2019.