Revealing the isolation and emptiness of the city during the pandemic in Russia, Bless You! Examines the uncertainty and concern expressed by people without full knowledge or access to information about the virus at the beginning of the pandemic. Through a series of anxious phone calls and meditative images of Saint Petersburg, the film captures the eery and unnerving feeling of the earlier stages of the pandemic, hearing the concerns of every day workers, citizens and families.
Many of these anxieties revolve around state support, social needs, money, and navigating the new restrictions in a legal manner. While the streets emptied out, the pandemic brought to the surface a multitude of pre-existing social, economic and political realities that could no longer be ignored. By holding space for voices with rising anxieties set on a backdrop of a slow, lonely and empty city, the film reminds us that despite visual and spatial isolation, our concerns and tragedies from this period are often a shared experience.
You must be logged in to post a comment.