Skorbnoye beschuvstviye

(Viewed on 19/10/13):Surreal critiques of bourgeois insularity are not unique in cinema, but no film maker has ever pushed that idea further than Sokurov did in Mournful Unconcern. Surrounded by the chaos of WW1, a large group of characters gather to socialise in and around an old mansion, oblivious to the problems outside of their comfortable cocoon-like abode. Aestheticism reigns supreme, overwhelming its satiricial content, and while it does meander, it's a captivatingly singular experience.