Of Freaks and Men

Alexei Balabanov hardly needs any introduction to the Rotterdam festival audience: all his films have been screened here. He is probably the best example of the new generation of Russian directors who have adapted well to the changing situation for film-making in Russia. His Brat, screened last year at the festival, was successful at home and abroad. Balabanov's latest film is entirely different and would have been inconceivable in both style and theme under the Soviet regime. The film shows the decadent side of St. Petersburg before the revolution. The style alludes to photography around 1900 and to silent film, right down to the intertitles.Of Freaks and Men is a story of human passions. The film follows two relatively affluent families in St Petersburg atthe turn of the twentieth century. The first is that of doctor Stasov and his attractive yet blind wife, Ekaterina Kirilovna. The second family consists of railway engineer Radlov and his daughter Lisa, an innocent and dreamy young woman. Lisa hates their servant, Grunya, who has become her father's mistress after her mother died. Lisa suspects her of having a secret liaison with a certain Johann, who owns a local photo studio. Gradually Johann worms his way into the families. With the aid of two assistants, he takes SM photos that he then distributes.