I decided to watch this knowing nothing about director Sergei Loznitsa’s previous work. It had gotten some buzz at Cannes when it premiered there, and it received rave reviews from many critics. The subject matter seemed interesting enough, although that era of Soviet history and the politics of that time have been covered quite widely in many films and books, so I was wondering whether Two Prosecutors would deliver a different perspective to the subject matter at hand.
Unfortunately I don’t think the perspective it gives is all that different. On one hand, Soviet censorship is obviously a bad thing, on the other hand telling a story like this makes for a very predictable outcome once the initial setup gets going. We are introduced to our young protagonist Kornyev, a prosecutor visiting a prison who finds a letter pleading for help. He goes to visit the prisoner, who lays out everything that is happening and warns Kornyev to watch his back. Given that he is the only one there who is willing to challenge the system all by himself, it becomes quite clear where the film is going to go and where it will end.
One thing I can complement the film on is its cinematography: it reminded me at times of a crossover between Wes Anderson’s framing (centering the subjects) with the drab colors and the blocking of a Roy Andersson film. Very grey color palettes, characters situated within interiors that highlight the absurdity of the given situation. In one scene, Kornyev tries to locate the Procurator General’s office, yet encountering random characters staring at our protagonist Kornyev. Maybe they suspect something going on with Kornyev – or it just means nothing. That scene in particular depicting the paranoia of the situation is an interesting angle the movie could have leaned into further, but instead we get a lot of moments involving heavy dialogue exchanges. All leading up to the inevitable outcome where he questions too much, digs himself into a hole too deep, and eventually gets caught. There is of course that fake-out where the agents sent to capture him on the train ride back from the Procurator General’s office, where they start playing guitar and acting friendly with Kornyev. Movie, I know what you’re trying to do and you cannot fool me!
It’s not a bad movie by any means, just that without a new angle or perspective I think this film will easily get buried in the mix of many other films exploring similar territory.