movie
Valitchka
Director: Alexis Cuzon
Year: 2022
Plot: 1941, east of Ukraine. Fleeing the fighting, Vera and her daughter Valentina have been walking relentlessly for several weeks, looking for their family, of whom they have no news. One day, as they seek refuge for the night, they cross paths with a unit of German soldiers. Alone among these enemies, mistrust reigns. But once fear and prejudice have passed, Valentina and her mother realize through this forced cohabitation that the German soldiers are not unlike them, forced to live a situation that they didn't want.
Original Title:
Valitchka
Director:
Alexis Cuzon
Writer:
William A. Juby
,
Théo Benavides-Nail
,
Alexis Cuzon
,
Benjamin Chauvin
,
Astéa Dachez
,
Julie Hervieu
,
Pierre Loret
,
Léonore Malenfant
Type: movie
Year: 2022
Genres: Short, Biography, History
Cast:
Alexandre Hervochon
,
Ruben Agelink
,
Lonni Garzena
,
Daria Stadnichenko
,
Marina Levsenko
Countries:
France
Languages:
German
,
Ukrainian
Color Info:
Color
Aspect Ratio: 1.85 : 1 (2K)
Original Air Date: 2022 (France)
Akas:
Valitchka (France)
Synopsis:
In the fall of 1941, Vera and her daughter Valentina walked relentlessly towards Lyssychansk, a city in eastern Ukraine. The sun is high. A dry wind whips their faces. Dehydrated and exhausted, Vera collapses in her daughter's arms. Turning around, Valentina sees an enemy truck coming around a bend. Frightened, supporting Vera, she tries to hide in a ditch with her mother, but they don't have time. The truck arrives too fast and stops at their level. Seated in the front of the vehicle, a Sergeant of the Wehrmacht starts speaking. As commanded, two soldiers, Heinrich and Egon, get out of the truck and approach the two women. Heinrich aggressively interrogates them about their destination and the contents of their backpacks. Despite her fear, Valentina manages to communicate with them. The Sergeant, seeing the sewing machine, embarks them, despite Heinrich's anger. Having no choice, they sit in the back of the truck among the soldiers who seem just as exhausted as they are. Egon attempts to reassure Valentina offering her and Vera a bar of gingerbread and water under Heinrich's stare. She shyly accepts and manages to communicate with him using simple gestures and the few German words she knows. Cradled by the road and the ambient heat, Vera and her daughter fall asleep.Awakened in the middle of the night by the muffled and threatening sounds of the bombings taking place not far from here, Valentina realizes that they are alone in the truck, which is now stationary. Lifting the tarp, she discovers that the soldiers have set up camp in an abandoned house, in an old farmhouse. Hungry, they join them timidly near the fire. Egon hands them a hot meal. Listening to them, she understands how much they suffer from this war that separates them from their families. Egon shows Valentina a picture of his wife and daughter, who are waiting for him in his small village in Germany. Valentina hands Egon a photo of her little sister Tonia, which he looks at with compassion. She explains to him that she and her mother have been walking for more than two months in the hope of finding her. Heinrich approaches the campfire, threatening the two women with his gun. Egon challenges him to stop, the atmosphere is heavy within the camp. On Günther's good advice, everyone settles down to go to sleep.At dawn, while the other soldiers are packing up their gear, Heinrich is awakened by the sergeant who commands him to fetch water in the nearby well. Egon goes in his stead to help his comrade. In the distance, the sound of an approaching plane catches his attention. Understanding that it is an enemy plane, he runs towards the barn and shouts to warn the rest of the soldiers. Vera hastens to wake her daughter up and takes her in her arms. Suddenly, multiple salvos are fired in the direction of the camp. Projectiles go through walls and kick up dust from the ground. Once calm has returned and the plane has definitely left, Heinrich, in shock, leaves the barn. Egon is there, lying on the ground, his chest riddled with bullets. Amon and Günther rush to try to save him. Valentina, leaving the barn, sees the photo of Egon's family on the ground. She picks it up and steps forward to give it to him. Egon hugs the picture tight. The soldiers try to save him, in vain. Heinrich, beside himself, blames the two women for being the cause of Egon's death. Vera joins Valentina and looks away from this nightmarish scene. The two walk away, leaving behind the overwhelmed soldiers, hoping to find Tonia as soon as they can.
Cinematographer:
William A. Juby
Composer:
Jacques Raffin
Editor:
Julie Hervieu
Sound Crew:
Adrien Guilbert
,
Axel Blouin
,
Sidney Bailly
,
Clara Tison
Visual Effects:
Charly Saujot
Make Up:
Hermine Loubert
Assistant Director:
Astéa Dachez
,
Julie Hervieu
,
Alexy Monnier
Camera and Electrical Department:
Aurelien Costes
,
Charlotte Davy
,
Teddy Seiler
,
Lola Ducret
,
Théo Benavides-Nail
,
Frédéric Lauqué
,
Benjamin Chauvin
,
Pierre Loret
,
Théo Lheureux
,
Pierre Vergne
,
Victor Portimojarvi
,
Elina Grundy
,
Clément Gauthier
,
Valentin Messé
Set Decoration:
Typhaine Volant
Costume Department:
Lolie Thepenier
,
Maëlle Razafindrainibe
,
Paul Touboulic
Script Department:
Mélissa Jaulin
Seasons:
Alexy Monnier