Nature is an intimidating presence in this snow-bound tale, in which a group of men attempt to grapple with the disappearance of one of their number.
Two men are trapped in a remote, snow-bound lodge. A third, Petar, left early that morning. Porter (Samuel Finzi) and Old Man (Iossif Surchadzhiev) are then joined by three more men. Petar’s horse-drawn sledge returns later in the day, carrying a fur coat, a shotgun and the carcass of a wolf. But Petar is nowhere to be found. It’s not the last disappearance, creating an air of suspicion amongst the men.
Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Andrey Paounov’s drama, adapted from a play by Bulgarian writer Yordan Radichkov (and co-written with Alex Barrett), has a Beckettian strangeness to it, with the reality of the men’s situation blurring with their fervid imaginings. Mostly shot in crip black and white, January is an arresting drama that edges towards the surreal, particularly in the film’s surprising final section.
We are thrilled to be welcome writer/director Andrey Paounov to Curzon Home Cinema to introduce January and his exclusive curated Director’s Picks collection. Watch the Introduction below and discover the collection here.
