Holidays

Nowhere else are there as many public holidays as in Russia. Swiss filmmaker Antoine Cattin uses the festivals and parades as an opportunity to guide us through the city of St. Petersburg and into the soul of a country that is difficult to understand. Along the way, we meet Dzhuz, a Kazakh immigrant who hops from job to job, accompany the xenophobic streetcar driver Dina at her rallies, share the joy of flowers on Women's Day with the well-off caretaker Anna, and follow the smart Nikita, who scales the city's roofs. Through its four protagonists, this superbly edited film captures the mood of a country full of contrasts, where the next war constantly hovers over its people like the sword of Damocles. (Zurich Film Festival)