“Gripping… Brilliant.” -Stephen Holden, NY TIMES

“Nerve rattling… Grounded in classic elements of film noir.” -Steve Dollar, WALL STREET JOURNAL

Winner of Cannes’ Un Certain Regard Special Jury Prize, Elena is a gripping, modern twist on the classic noir thriller. Sixty-ish spouses Vladimir and Elena uneasily share his palatial Moscow apartment—he’s a still-virile, wealthy businessman; she’s his dowdy former nurse who has clearly “married up.” Estranged from his own wild-child daughter, Vladimir openly despises his wife’s freeloading son and family. But when a sudden illness and an unexpected reunion threaten the dutiful housewife’s potential inheritance, she must hatch a desperate plan…. Masterfully crafted by award-winning Russian filmmaker Andrey Zvyagintsev (Golden Globe nominee The Return) and featuring evocative, Hitchcockian music by Philip Glass, Elena is a subtly stylish exploration of crime, punishment and human nature.

A Russian family is torn apart by a fight over inheritance in this gripping, modern twist on the classic noir thriller that explores crime, punishment, and human nature

2011, Russia, 109 min, color, 35mm • Director/writer: Andrey Zvyagintsev • Co-Writer: Oleg Negin • Cast: Nadezhda Markina, Andrey Smirnov, Elena Lyadova • 2011 Toronto International Film Festival