International Competition

Director Alina Rudnitskaya creates an oppressive sense of foreboding in observational shots of young women waiting in a Russian clinic. Filmed in grisaille colors, this documentary is not quick to reveal what the women dressed in bathrobes are waiting for, what happens behind the swinging doors, or why the women are so downcast. Rudnitskaya appears to have filmed them from a distance, but this has allowed her to penetrate even more deeply into the minds of these inwardly focused women. The camera films the bleak waiting room whose only decoration is a hat stand. In the background, all we hear is the ominous sound of stretchers being wheeled around. The camera observes the behavior of these women, all of whom have had to make a most difficult decision, chiefly because of a lack of money. The women's faces reflect their desperate situation; it might not be the last time that they will be sitting here in this cold waiting room. Just occasionally, the camera takes a break outside, to a wintry bridge. The cold is lurking there as well.