A portrait of the brilliant author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn from director Aleksandr Sokurov. The film takes its time with its subject, Sokurov asking questions and occasionally arguing with Solzhenitsyn's answers, but mostly listening as the author reflects on varying subjects, including the cruelty of humanity, the presence of beauty in the world, the terrifying promise of civilization and progress, and the redemptive power of suffering. The film offers an insightful picture of a great man.