Isaac (Lithuanian: Izaokas) is the first feature film by Lithuanian director Jurgis Matulevičius. It is the first feature film that deals with the participation of Lithuanians in the killing of Jews during the Holocaust.[1] The drama is based on the last novel of the same name by Antanas Škėma before his death in 1961.[2] It was selected as the Lithuanian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards.[3][4]

Premise

Isaac is drama about a Lithuanian activist haunted by the guilt of killing a Jew in the Lietūkis garage massacre in June 1941.[5]

Production

Antanas Škėma wrote the novel in 1960–1961, but it attracted little attention. It was first published in a volume of his collected works in 1985. It was republished as a separate work in 2018.[2]

The film was made in Lithuania by the Film Jam production company. The filming took place in Vilnius, Kaunas, and Klaipėda and lasted about two and a half years.[2]

Its world premiere happened in November 2019 at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival.[6] In 2020, it was nominated for the Discovery prize at the European Film Awards.[7]

In 2020, it was shown at the Glasgow Film Festival, at the Riviera International Film Festival and at Eastern European Film Festival Cottbus (Germany).[8][9][10] In October 2020, Isaac was also named second best film and Matulevičius was selected best second best director at the 19th Imagineindia International Film Festival in Spain.[11]

Critical response

Lithuanian National Radio and Television said that the film was "the most surprising" at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival and praised the film for its anti-war message.[12]

Stephen Dalton writing for the Hollywood Reporter noted that such a confident and sophisticated work deserved a wider audience beyond the usual niche demographic for subtitled art house fare".[13]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Smolienė, Agnė (July 17, 2017). "Filmas "Izaokas" atvers diskusiją apie tamsiąją istorijos pusę" [The film "Isaac" will open a discussion about the dark side of history]. Diena (in Lithuanian). Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Ožalas, Audrius (December 1, 2018). "D.Kuolys apie A.Škėmos "Izaoką": tai kūrinys, nenusileidžiantis "Baltai drobulei"" [D. Kuoys about A.Škėma's "Isaac": it is a work that is on pair with the "White Shroud"] (in Lithuanian). 15min.lt. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Oscars International Race 2021: Complete List of Entries". The Wrap. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
  4. ↑ "Lithuania picks Holocaust film as its second entry to vie for Oscars". LRT. 10 November 2021. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  5. ↑ Blaney, Martin (April 3, 2018). ""Winter Brothers" triumphs at Vilnius Film Festival". Screen Daily. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  6. ↑ "Latest Lithuanian films and projects to compete in Tallinn". The Baltic Times. November 15, 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  7. ↑ "Six Debut Films Nominated" (Press release). Berlin: European Film Awards. October 8, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  8. ↑ Jamieson, Teddy (March 1, 2020). "10 films to catch at the Glasgow Film Festival". The Herald (Glasgow). Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Claudia Gerini ospite d'eccezione del Riviera International Film Festival 2020" [Claudia Gerini special guest of the Riviera International Film Festival 2020] (in Italian). Sky TG24. August 24, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  10. ↑ Müller, Bernd (December 9, 2020). "Alte Schlachten, neue Narrative" [Old battles, new narratives]. Junge Welt (in German). Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  11. ↑ ""Castle of Dreams" star Hamed Behdad honored at Imagineindia festival". Tehran Times. October 10, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  12. ↑ ""Lietūkio" skerdynes menantis Jurgio Matulevičiaus "Izaokas" plėšia tvarstį nuo tautos žaizdos" [Izaokas, reminiscent of the "Lietūkis" massacre, rips a bandage from the wound] (in Lithuanian). Lithuanian National Radio and Television. December 4, 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  13. ↑ Dalton, Stephen (November 12, 2019). ""Isaac": Film Review". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
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