Blockade(Блокада)

Name: Blockade
Genre: Documentary, History, War

Russia · 2005
52m
Director Sergey Loznitsa
Starring
Genre Documentary, History, War

A film comprised solely of footage of the siege of Leningrad during World War II that director Sergei Loznitsa found in the Moscow film archives. Devoid of sound or any accompanying music, this film lets the found footage tell the complete story, uninterrupted by editing of any kind. An unflinching 52 minute testament to the near death of a city and the stoic heroism of the Russian resistance

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Village Voice by

Loznitsa doesn't adorn the eerie footage with talking heads and factoid title cards. What narrative there is, along with a sense of incrementally mounting horror, emerges unbidden from the images.

New York Daily News by Jack Mathews

The film makes you squirm as well as empathize, but it does need narration.

The New York Times by Stephen Holden

It all has a ghostly feel, like eerie murmurs during a séance: the static of history heard on a short-wave radio.

New York Post by V.A. Musetto

The surreal images lack narration and talking heads, which is no problem. In fact, the device makes the shocking footage more compelling.