My Joy

The narrative debut of documentarian Sergei Loznitsa.

A German-Dutch-Ukranian coproduction, shot in Russia by a Belarus-born director (and premiered in Cannes), “My Joy” is the definition of international cinema, although the focus of its considerable rage rests squarely on the former Soviet Union. The film’s title is ironic and then some, as the film depicts a nation overrun by casual cruelty, thievery and murder. A dark and difficult movie, it spends nearly an hour following Georgy (Viktor Nemets), a young trucker, only to abandon him in favor of flashbacks to WWII, as if to reveal the origins of the brutality that ends up engulfing our would-be hero. (127 min.) Rob Nelson. 3 out of 4 stars