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I wanted to but couldn't!

A Disappointing Continuation

It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

At a time when catholic church is involved in numerous controversies which have distanced followers from this religion, the success of the Russian film 'Ostrov'/'The Island' should be heralded as the breath of fresh air. It brings home the message that it is only a religion which can bring spiritual succor to human beings. The involvement of its leading player Pyotr Mamonov is nothing short of a miracle. Initially, he was reluctant to act in this film. However, at a later date he was convinced by a religious authority that such a role would bring him closer to religion. It is with great poise that he played the role of a holy monk who is afflicted by guilt as something unpleasant happened to him during second world war. In Russia, there is hardly anybody from the old generation who has not heard his rock songs which spoke about freedom. Apart from the rich message about man's need to embrace spirituality, Ostrov succeeds as the locations where it was shot are simply extraordinary. Filmed in the province of Karelia, Ostrov boasts of some of the finest locations ever filmed to portray an orthodox monastery. Past experience has shown that religion and cinema haven't been good mates. Russian film 'Ostrov' is an absolute exception to this rule. It is solely for this reason that it must be watched by all and sundry.

What to say about this movie, one word should describe it: MASTERPIECE.. First, for me was to slow, but after ~ 20 minutes I was so enthusiastic. Great movie, great actor(s), great story. The best movie I watched this year. I watched this movie yesterday, I am sure that I will watch it some more times. The cinematography is excellent, main actor (Fr. Anatoli) is excellent, story is excellent. Story about crime and repentance. These kind of things happens in real word, in many countries, so this is not only story of Orthodox Christian, but for all people no matter of religious background. This movie return faith and heal souls. My recommendation as one movie that you must watch before you die :)

A man is driven insane with guilt after he kills a fellow sailor in 1942.He ends up in a monastery where his eccentric behavior makes him sought after by people seeking divine advice and cures.Years later the man he thought he killed shows up with his insane daughter (who the eccentric cures) and he finds out he felt guilt for no reason all those years.Like the necklace by Maupassant he spent his life agonizing and trying to atone for something he actually didn't do.It is different and definitely worth watching.It also reminds me of a character out of Dostoevsky--a semi insane monk who people think is holy. I think it is in the Brothers Karamazov.

This is a film that can leave you breathless. I have watched it three times in three days and couldn't take my mind off it for a while. I remember that only Dostoievski's Crime and Punishment had had such a strong effect on me when I was a teenager. This is the story of a miserable, coward traitor who, through repentance, turns his life into an exemplary one. The acting of Pyotry Mamonov is effortless and simply superb. In my opinion, Ostrov is accessible to anyone and it is not at all a movie for the initiated in orthodoxy. As a matter of fact, I don't think it is so much about Orthodoxy itself, but rather about that encounter, that event that takes place in a human life and that can happen anywhere, anytime.