Stark yet rivetingly sincere, the latest feature from Andrey Zvyagintsev is feel bad in extremis.
As a Leningrad couple look to divorce, so their 12 year-old son (Matvey Novikov), caught in the vindictive and argumentative maelstrom, disappears.
It’s a devastating drama, with Aleksey Rozin and newcomer Maryana Spivak superbly nuanced as the couple in a feature that is never afraid to allow scenes to slowly unfold in all its dour yet heightened banality. A layered slow burn, Loveless is another of Zvyagintsev’s desolate commentaries on contemporary Russian society.
One of the best films of the year so far.
Nominated for the 2018 Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.
Rating: 83%
Director: Andrey Zvyagintsev (Leviathan, Elena)
Writer: Oleg Negin (Leviathan, Elena), Andrey Zvyagintsev (Leviathan, Elena)
Main cast: Aleksey Rozin (Leviathan, Elena), Maryana Spivak, Matvey Novikov
An Opinion or Two 
2 thoughts on “‘Loveless’ (Nelyubov)”