Ostrov of the dark ages
Ostrov of the dark ages
Although the core of the story takes place in 1976, there is no doubt
the movie addresses the moral decay of the post-Soviet era. In each of
its main five episodes it deals respectively with the sins plaguing the
contemporary Russian society: Murder (abortion episode), Greed (widow
episode), Pride (disabled boy episode), Envy (father Filaret episode),
and Sloth (Father Iov episode). This structural simplicity was
intentionally created to appeal to the majority of viewers ignorant of
even the basics of modern ethics. Unfortunately, it also means that
those who are familiar with writers like Dostoyevsky will find the
story stale and predictable.
Not only are the sins clearly identified it is also suggested how to
deal with them: an honest thorough prayer. God plays an important role
in the movie with about a 1/3 of its 112 running minutes being devoted
to dialogues about Jesus, monologues about Jesus, and prayers involving
him. It is probably impossible to find another motion picture in the
entire history of movie-making which can match its repetitive, blunt
and pointless religious submission. This insidious propaganda of the
Orthodox church masqueraded as "spiritual masterpiece" is an insult to
anyone who is blessed with having a secular, or even non-Christian,
worldview.
So, the movie links the apparently low moral standards in the society
to the lost connection with God. The rediscovery of spirituality is
presented as the ultimate cure for the morally sick country. This is a
message the authors tried so hard to make but at a closer examination
they failed miserably. The only reason why the characters were
"improved" after seeing Mamonov was their fear of God's retribution.
And that's precisely the point: the Russian society does not need
spiritual awakening it needs a coercive fatherly figure with a whip.
The point unintended but beautifully illustrated by the film.
This brings me to my last point: what the success of the film really
shows is the utter lack of HUMANISM in the Russian cultural landscape
with each individual being treated simply as a subject of some
authority. Until it's changed Ostrov of "spirituality" could well be
Ostrov Gulag with equal success – it was shown that punitive systems
work well on Russians and thus make humanism irrelevant as far as moral
standards are concerned. Those late 20th century's attempts to
introduce honest secular humanism to the masses as exemplified in
"Prisoner of the Mountains" (Kavkazskiy plennik) or "East-West"
(Vostok-Zapad) seem long gone.
In summary, the movie is scary as its success demonstrates what some
feared 15 years ago – the post-communist ideological vacuum being
inevitably filled up with the coercive and deceiving poison of the
Russian Orthodox Christianity. The church's millennium of the unique
know-how on repression of individualism is an ironic cure for the
society that has just shrugged off almost a century of another coercive
and murderous regime. The country seems to be in another relapse to
dark ages. This time it will probably stay there for good.