Essentially, "Russian Ark" is a 90-minute filmed tour of the Russian State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. Which sounds about as fun as a 90-minute filmed museum tour.
Fortunately, however, there's a bit more to this fantasy than just that.
The film was shot in one dizzying, 96-minute take. Which is even more mind-blowing when you realize that, in that single shot, the filmmakers wind in and out of the museum's many levels, rooms and wings, and also attempt to bring to life more than 200 years of Russian history.
So, if nothing else, you have to appreciate the technique, which also makes the film's at-arm's-length atmosphere a little easier to swallow. (You'd do well to at least brush up on your Russian history before you see this one.)
"Russian Ark" follows an unseen narrator, a modern-day Russian who believes he's become "unstuck" in time. So now he finds himself wandering throughout the museum, where he encounters a variety of historical figures.
He's also stuck with a reluctant partner of sorts, a 19th-century French aristocrat who's convinced he's there as some sort of punishment for his somewhat controversial writings about Russian culture.
As he tries to make sense of things, our narrator also tries not to let the Frenchman interfere with what's going on. That's a difficult task, especially when the two of them keep running into such historical figures as Catherine the Great (Mariya Kuznetsova), Peter the Great (Maksim Sergeyev) and others.
Obviously, it's an odd premise. But director Aleksandr Sokhurov does have fun with it. You have to wonder if the same can be said of cinematographer Tilman Buttner and his crew, who had to do the actual filming in one continuous take.
Again, the film is a little aloof, which means that it will try the patience of some. Others will at least be captivated by the credible re-creations of the different time periods, as well as the breathtakingly beautiful museum itself.
"Russian Ark" is not rated but would probably receive a PG for a couple of brief scenes of violence (including some servant abuse) and scattered use of mild profanity (religiously based) and crude slang terms. Running time: 96 minutes.
E-MAIL: jeff@desnews.com