Writer-director Rainer Sarnet’s deliriously weird The Invisible Fight would be irksome if it weren’t crafted so lovingly and with a charming earnestness. Part wuxia homage, part coming-of-age story, this slice of absurdist historical fiction has little on its mind other than to amuse, which it does regularly enough to stay on the audience’s good side.
The film is set in the Soviet Union circa 1973, with the drabness of life under an authoritarian regime sharply contrasting with the more fulfilling, vibrant existence that our protagonist, Rafael (Ursel Tilk), is chasing after. The young man, who still lives with his mother in a modest apartment, is the only survivor of an attack by three Chinese bandits at the Soviet-Chinese border, where he works as a guard. When his car breaks down one day near a monastery, Rafael, a rebel in search of radicalization, goads the monks and does his...
The film is set in the Soviet Union circa 1973, with the drabness of life under an authoritarian regime sharply contrasting with the more fulfilling, vibrant existence that our protagonist, Rafael (Ursel Tilk), is chasing after. The young man, who still lives with his mother in a modest apartment, is the only survivor of an attack by three Chinese bandits at the Soviet-Chinese border, where he works as a guard. When his car breaks down one day near a monastery, Rafael, a rebel in search of radicalization, goads the monks and does his...
- 2/17/2024
- by Charles Lyons-Burt
- Slant Magazine
"I'm going to be a monk." Kino Lorber has unveiled their official US trailer for the Estonian film known as The Invisible Fight, a martial arts comedy made by Estonian filmmaker Rainer Sarnet (also of the cult hit November). This is finally set to open in US theaters in February, starting at the Alamo Drafthouse Lower Manhattan, with more cities to follow throughout March. It premiered at Locarno and played at Fantastic Fest and Sitges (where I caught up with it). The Invisible Fight is described as a satirical take on the martial arts film, artfully paying tribute to the genre's Chinese wuxia roots. Set in the 1970s, it's about an Estonian guard on the Soviet-Chinese border who, after surviving and watching a deadly attack, decides to become a monk but must continually prove along the way that he's capable of becoming the enlightened man that he set out to be.
- 1/30/2024
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
In out-there Estonian comedy “The Invisible Fight,” a clueless Russian border guard somehow escapes a surprise attack by three formidable Chinese action figures — gravity-defying kung fu warriors who swoop in out of nowhere, blasting Black Sabbath on their bright red boombox — so he does what anyone in his position would do: He resolves to become an Orthodox monk. Huh? “I guess God has other plans for you,” a less-fortunate comrade wheezes with his dying breath, setting up one of the oddest plots audiences are likely to find on the art-house circuit this year.
After attracting international attention with 2017 festival discovery “November” —a hyper-stylized, black-and-white folk horror novelty involving pagan stick monsters known as “kratts” — writer-director Rainer Sarnet swings to the color-saturated opposite extreme to make a genre-splicing martial arts satire. Set in the highly repressive, mid-’70s Soviet Union and shot like a vintage drive-in movie, “The Invisible Fight” treats kung fu as comedy,...
After attracting international attention with 2017 festival discovery “November” —a hyper-stylized, black-and-white folk horror novelty involving pagan stick monsters known as “kratts” — writer-director Rainer Sarnet swings to the color-saturated opposite extreme to make a genre-splicing martial arts satire. Set in the highly repressive, mid-’70s Soviet Union and shot like a vintage drive-in movie, “The Invisible Fight” treats kung fu as comedy,...
- 8/23/2023
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
LevelK has boarded “The Invisible Fight,” Estonian director Rainer Sarnet’s kung fu comedy set in an Orthodox monastery in the former Soviet Union. The film world premieres Aug. 11 in the main competition of the Locarno Film Festival.
“The Invisible Fight” is set in 1973 on the Soviet-Chinese border, where Private Rafael is on guard duty when his border post is attacked by a band of Chinese warriors schooled in the ancient art of kung fu. The only one to miraculously survive, Rafael, is fascinated by the long-haired, black-clad, kung fu hippies flying through the treetops while blasting forbidden Black Sabbath music from their portable radio. He’s suddenly struck by a revelation: he, too, wants to become a kung fu warrior.
Faith leads Rafael to an Orthodox monastery where the black-clad monks do their training, but his road to achieving the almighty power of humility required is long, winding and full of adventures.
“The Invisible Fight” is set in 1973 on the Soviet-Chinese border, where Private Rafael is on guard duty when his border post is attacked by a band of Chinese warriors schooled in the ancient art of kung fu. The only one to miraculously survive, Rafael, is fascinated by the long-haired, black-clad, kung fu hippies flying through the treetops while blasting forbidden Black Sabbath music from their portable radio. He’s suddenly struck by a revelation: he, too, wants to become a kung fu warrior.
Faith leads Rafael to an Orthodox monastery where the black-clad monks do their training, but his road to achieving the almighty power of humility required is long, winding and full of adventures.
- 8/9/2023
- by Christopher Vourlias and Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
"I see what goes on under my nose." Roadside Attractions has debuted a second official US trailer for an Estonian Cold War love triangle romantic thriller titled Firebird. It's now opening in April this spring after being delayed from release last fall. The film is made in Estonia but it's shot in English. At the height of the Cold War, a troubled soldier enters a forbidden love triangle with a fighter pilot and his female comrade amid the dangerous surroundings of a Soviet Air Force Base. Firebird shares the true story of forbidden love on a military base. This film is a journey of following love at all costs, of growing up, and of courage even in the most impossible of situations. It's inspired by the true story of Sergey Fetisov. The film stars Tom Prior as Sergey, along with Oleg Zagorodnii, Diana Pozharskaya, Jake Thomas Henderson, Margus Prangel, Ester Kuntu,...
- 3/17/2022
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
"You know what happens to men like you?" An official US trailer has debuted for an Estonian Cold War love triangle romantic thriller titled Firebird, which is a slick name for a film like this. At the height of the Cold War, a troubled soldier forms a forbidden love triangle with a fighter pilot and his female comrade amid the dangerous surroundings of a Soviet Air Force Base. Firebird shares the true story of forbidden love, set on a military base at the height of the Cold War. This film is a journey of following love at all costs, of growing up, and of courage even in the most impossible of situations. It's inspired by the true story of Sergey Fetisov. The film stars Tom Prior as Sergey, along with Oleg Zagorodnii, Diana Pozharskaya, Jake Thomas Henderson, Margus Prangel, Ester Kuntu, and Nicholas Woodeson. It premiered at the 2021 BFI Flare...
- 11/3/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
The Bulgarian drama has been named the winner of the 24th edition of the Estonian festival, with the Best Baltic Feature Film title going to The Last Ones. This year opting for a hybrid edition, the 24th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (13-29 November) wrapped its awards ceremony with Ivaylo Hristov’s Fear being chosen as the winner of the Official Selection – Competition. Set on the Bulgarian border, on a new route for African migrants arriving from Turkey in the hope of reaching Germany, it was also given a grant of €10,000. “This clever, impressively scripted and wonderfully performed feature manages the rare feat of being compassionate and provocative while also delivering striking moments of absurdist humour,” argued the jury, headed by Mark Adams, and also including Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, Izabela Kiszka-Hoflik and Ester Kuntu. “In a period when the subject of immigration is very much in the headlines, this...
- 11/30/2020
- Cineuropa - The Best of European Cinema
Nisan Dağ wins best director for ‘When I’m Done Dying’.
Director Ivaylo Hristov and producer Assen Vladimirov have won the Grand Prix for best film, for Bulgarian drama Fear, at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF).
The event presented its awards in Tallinn, Estonia this evening. Hristov and Vladimirov share the €10,000 grant that comes with the win.
Scroll down for the full list of awards
They were awarded the prize by a jury consisting of Mark Adams, Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, Izabela Kiszka-Hoflik and Ester Kuntu.
The jury praised “a beautifully-made film that astutely balances dry humour with important contemporary drama.
Director Ivaylo Hristov and producer Assen Vladimirov have won the Grand Prix for best film, for Bulgarian drama Fear, at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF).
The event presented its awards in Tallinn, Estonia this evening. Hristov and Vladimirov share the €10,000 grant that comes with the win.
Scroll down for the full list of awards
They were awarded the prize by a jury consisting of Mark Adams, Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, Izabela Kiszka-Hoflik and Ester Kuntu.
The jury praised “a beautifully-made film that astutely balances dry humour with important contemporary drama.
- 11/27/2020
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
The intimidating task of adapting and directing Estonia’s landmark novel of the 20th century doesn’t appear to have fazed Tanel Toom in his feature debut “Truth and Justice,” nor has it challenged him to deliver anything but a respectful, well-made literary adaptation. Given that the film was one of six projects chosen by Estonia’s government-backed film-funding body for their celebration of the nation’s centennial, it’s unsurprising this rural epic, based on Anton Hansen Tammsaare’s eponymous five-part classic, hones closely to standard formulas, presenting archetypal characters formed in equal parts by their environment and their epoch. Box office records were broken at home following a late February opening, and while the film’s selection to represent Estonia at the Academy Awards was a no-brainer, its crossover chances on international screens will be limited at best.
Broken down to its essentials, “Truth and Justice” is the multi-decade...
Broken down to its essentials, “Truth and Justice” is the multi-decade...
- 12/16/2019
- by Jay Weissberg
- Variety Film + TV
Which film will follow on from ‘Roma’ in winning the prize?
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
- 9/5/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Which film will follow on from ‘Roma’ in winning the prize?
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
- 9/3/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Which film will follow on from ‘Roma’ in winning the prize?
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
- 9/2/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Which film will follow on from ‘Roma’ in winning the prize?
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
- 8/30/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Which film will follow on from ‘Roma’ in winning the prize?
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
- 8/29/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Which film will follow on from ‘Roma’ in winning the prize?
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track, and can include animated and documentary features.
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track, and can include animated and documentary features.
- 8/29/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Which film will follow on from ‘Roma’ in winning the prize?
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track, and can include animated and documentary features.
Submissions for the best international feature film award at the 2020 Academy Awards have started to come in, and Screen is keeping a running list of each film below.
This is the first year the award will be given under the new name of ‘best international feature film’, after a change in April from ‘foreign-language film’.
The eligibility rules remain the same: an international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the Us with a predominantly non-English dialogue track, and can include animated and documentary features.
- 8/29/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Newell to speak at festival’s Music Meets Film event.
This year’s industry activity at the Tallinn Black Nights Festival, the Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, gets underway today (November 26) in the Estonian capital and runs until Friday, November 30.
Included in the line-up is the 2018 European Film Forum, which closes the week on November 30. The focus of this year’s Forum is ‘Creativity, Technology, Finance: Sustaining European Diversity post-2020’.
Backed by Creative Europe’s Media programme, topics discussed this year will include innovation in the global content race, how European cinema can benefit from short form, narrative games and robotics,...
This year’s industry activity at the Tallinn Black Nights Festival, the Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, gets underway today (November 26) in the Estonian capital and runs until Friday, November 30.
Included in the line-up is the 2018 European Film Forum, which closes the week on November 30. The focus of this year’s Forum is ‘Creativity, Technology, Finance: Sustaining European Diversity post-2020’.
Backed by Creative Europe’s Media programme, topics discussed this year will include innovation in the global content race, how European cinema can benefit from short form, narrative games and robotics,...
- 11/26/2018
- by Tom Grater
- ScreenDaily
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