Film isn’t only a great medium to look at the current state of the world, for example, Ari Aster’s Eddington portrays current America, but also to ensure that we never forget the past. The Byelorussian-born Ukrainian filmmaker Sergei Loznitsa knows that like no other. After becoming a controversial documentary maker because of his outspoken opposition to the boycott of Russian films, he’s now taking the audience back in time in his Two Prosecutors (original title: Dva prokurora). While the timely adaptation of the same-named novel by psychist/writer Georgy Demidov certainly is an alarming reminder of how hard it is to defeat totalitarianism with hope and determination only, it feels all too repetitive and formulaic.
Teaming up again with cinematographer Oleg Mutu after working together on The Event, Loznitsa takes you back to 1937. Even before the story has fully and truly started, you can see that this work will be a stunning visualized feature. The décor feels incredibly authentic, and the dark cinematography and the cloudy vibe transport you back to the height of Stalin’s terror. You feel the immense suffering of the people, the terrible circumstances they’re living in, and the oppression they have to undergo. The absence of editing and lingering shots ensures that this haunting feeling comes through even more.
It’s that mix of the almost invisible work of editor Danielius Kokanauskis (The Southern Chronicles, The Invasion) and the extended scenes that makes and breaks this film. During the moments in which you see what humiliating tasks people (in this case, prisoners) are condemned to do and in which you see a broken country that’s ruled with an iron fist by a totalitarian dictator, that combination truly sucks you into Loznitsa’s latest work. You instantly go through many emotions. From the disgust of seeing the bleak state to feeling a bit of courage when witnessing that some people are still fighting for a better world, you certainly go on an emotional rollercoaster.
There’s also a sparkle of hope in the form of Kornyev (Aleksandr Kuznetsov). After receiving a blood-written letter from a Communist party member addressed to Stalin, his ambition to finally prove his work as a young prosecutor and his more idealist mindset encourage him to find out where the letter originated. The letter was passed down to him via former intellectual Stepniak (Aleksandr Filippenko), who’s now severely mistreated in jail by the NKVD (the Soviet secret police). Kornyev has to face the relentlessly powerful bureaucratic bleakness at every step of his quest for justice.
He soon realizes that he lives in a world that doesn’t share his vision of justice, not even his stern and undeterred superior, Andrey Vyshynsky (Anatoliy Beliy), with whom he seeks a meeting to help Stepniak. However, backing down isn’t an option, as Kornyev’s passion for changing the system that is larger than him is just too big.
His requests to speak Vyshynsky fall on deaf ears multiple times, but when the two prosecutors finally come face-to-face, the movie finds its true power. This is because of tense and emotion-packed central performances. Like his character, the Russian rising star Kuznetsov (Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore) is the youngest of the two, but that doesn’t mean he’s being overclassed. No, the filmmaker offered him a complex role, mainly because there are a lot of silent scenes, and it’s undoubtedly one that Kuznetsov loved to sink his teeth into. Whether with body language, his piercing eyes only, or the emotionally loaded (but too long) conversations, he puts on a compelling portrayal of a young man who’s literally and figuratively silenced by the oppressive system.
A system that’s being represented by Beliy, who embodies rampant corruption and bureaucracy in the best way possible. Even with only a few words, Beliy, who has already worked with Loznitsa on the documentary Maidan, significantly shows the oppression starting with Stalin’s Great Purge of the late 1930s. At the same time, he also reminds us that even now, many governments apply that same way of thinking and ruling from the past.
So why, with genuinely moving performances and the excellent production design that sets the perfect tone and mood, doesn’t Two Prosecutors work? Well, that’s also where the absent editing comes into play. Many prolonged conversations feel formulaic. The filmmaker puts down the camera in front of the actors and lets them work their magic for minutes on end, uninterrupted. There’s nothing wrong with this approach, as it can help increase the human and emotional level; if every scene is like that, it’s all too repetitive. Even the more extended scenes of the scenery can’t break through the monotonous feeling.
That being said, despite the lengthy lead-up and the sameness of many scenes, the transportive performances, and the astonishing set, Loznitsa’s return to fiction is a beautiful tragedy about feeling powerless against corruption but never giving up hope.
Two Prosecutors held its World Premiere in the competition section of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.
Director: Sergei Loznitsa
Screenwriter: Sergei Loznitsa
Rated: NR
Runtime: 118m
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GVN Rating
Subtitle translator by day. Film journalist by night.
