Friend or Foe in “Tightness” by Kantemir Balagov

We watched a film by a 25-year-old director Kantemir Balagova back at the first press screening on Cannes Film Festival as part of the Un Certain Regard program. Brave, honest history. Unexpected for the European viewer. Amazing filmed and acted. Strong debut. Real statement.

It was immediately clear that the film was a potential winner and was included in Un Certain Regard only due to the age of the director, country of origin and the “debut” nature of the film. Moreover, another burden of the film is that the film industry (investors, producers, distributors...) does not like to bother with films about ethnic issues. And “Tightness” is exactly about this. However, here too Kantemir Balagov triumphs. One of the world's most influential distributors - Wild Bunch — buys a film. Cantemir himself receives a prize FIPRESCI - International Federation of Film Press - in Cannes. Then in June the film begins its victorious festival procession in Russia: it collects awards at "Kinotavr", receives the Grand Prix at the Andrei Tarkovsky Festival "Mirror". And now the premiere in Russian capitals. Attention to the director is growing by leaps and bounds.

The first scandals. We did not see anything anti-Russian in Balagov’s film, as in "Leviathan" Zvyagintsev in my time. But a definitely determined part of the press, active citizens, as if envying the success or creating an information feed for themselves, are already throwing arrows towards the director. It's all temporary. Now let's get to the heart of the matter.

1998 Kabardino-Balkaria. Jewish community of Nalchik. Kidnapping. Forbidden love. Chechen War. "Tightness" - intricately woven insoluble-unbearable tangle religious, social, age, ethical contradictions. All the conflicts and problems raised in the film. difficult to list. Balagov superbly manages to show the “gap” not only between ethnic communities in the Caucasus, but also the gap within these same communities. The “tribe”, the community into which a person is born, forces him to play by its rules. Using human resources, it throws away waste material. “Your “tribe” has turned to you today...” says the Jewish main character in response to her mother’s objection to love with a Kabardian, when local the Jewish community did not give money to ransom the boy from newcomer Jewish family. “Tsnota” can be taken to a higher level of comprehension, beyond the limits of “local” problems: this is not a film about the Caucasus, about interethnic problems in Russia, but even rather about the friend-foe problem, the rebellion of one, courage and freedom of choice.

A must watch!