Russian Ark

(2002)

★ 7.2 IMDb · 514 votes

Genres: Drama, Fantasy, History

Year: 2002

Runtime: 96 мин

Country: Russia, Germany

Director: Александр Сокуров

Cast: Сергей Дрейден, Мария Кузнецова, Леонид Мозговой, Mikhail Piotrovsky, Давид Гиоргобиани, Александр Чабан, Лев Елисеев, Oleg Khmelnitsky, Алла Осипенко, Artyom Strelnikov

Plot

A ghost and a French marquis wander through the Winter Palace in St Petersburg, encountering scenes from many different periods of its history.

An unseen man regains consciousness, not knowing who or where he is. No one seems to be able to see him, except the mysterious man dressed in black. He eventually learns through their discussions that this man is a 19th century French aristocrat, who he coins the "European". This turn of events is unusual as the unseen man has a knowledge of the present day. The two quickly learn that they are in the Winter Palace of the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, the European who has a comprehensive knowledge of Russian history to his time. As the two travel through the palace and its grounds, they interact with people from various eras of Russian history, either through events that have happened at the palace or through the viewing of artifacts housed in the museum. Ultimately, the unseen man's desired journey is to move forward, with or without his European companion.