Burnt by the Sun Movie Review

Burnt by the Sun deservedly won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film of 1994. It captures a heartbreakingly lovely summer day in the country. Bolshevik hero Serguei Kotov is madly in love with his wife and small daughter and their life together is joyful and serene. The arrival of his wife's former lover Dimitri appears to be no more than a catch-up-on-the-past visit at first. But gradually, Serguei realizes that he is about to give his family the ultimate gift: a treasured memory and the secure knowledge of his love for them. Director Nikita Mikhalkov skillfully weaves the light-hearted ambiance of a happy family with vaguely disturbing sexual games, far more disquieting political undercurrents, and finally, sheer horror. The unclouded sweetness of the relationship between Serguei and his little girl is beautifully conveyed by Mikhalkov and his real-life daughter Nadia. AKA: Outomlionnye Solntsem.

1994 (R) 134m/C RU FR Nikita Mikhalkov, Ingeborga Dapkounaite, Oleg Menshikov, Nadia Mikhalkov, Andre Oumansky, Viatcheslav Tikhonov, Svetlana Krioutchkova, Vladimir Ilyine; D: Nikita Mikhalkov; W: Nikita Mikhalkov, Rustam Ibragimbekov; C: Vilen Ka-lyuta; M: Eduard Artemyev. Academy Awards ‘94: Best Foreign Film; Cannes Film Festival ‘94: Grand Jury Prize; Nominations: Australian Film Institute ‘96: Best Foreign Film; British Academy Awards ‘95: Best Foreign Film. VHS, LV