Beanpole

'Beanpole' opens in the year of 1945. During the Second World War, the Eastern Front of Europe has laid waste to Leningrad. Its buildings have been demolished and its inhabitants are physically and morally decimated as death continues to torment the city. In the midst of the ruins, two women, Iya (Viktoria Miroshnichenko) and Masha (Vasilisa Perelygina), try to raise themselves up from beneath the rubble and rebuild their lives. Iya suffers from post-concussion syndrome, historically called war neurosis, after having fought in the Battle of the Siege of Leningrad, but returned to the city nonetheless alongside Masha, her best friend. Iya wants a new life to replace the one she lost and refuses to be dissuaded by the fact that his reproductive organs were surgically removed at some point before completing her military service. Masha, Iya and the six-year-old Pashka are the only family that they all have.

The film was presented at Cannes Festival 2019, though as part of the A Certain Miracle section rather than the Official Section. It is directed by the Russian cinematographer Kantemir Balagov, who impressed the critics two years ago with 'Closeness', a portrait of familial crisis set in the Cáucaso; and this time around, he has opted for an intimate drama where two women find themselves trapped between war trauma, incessant guilt and the desire to be mothers.

• Drama