Sergei Loznitsa Thinks ‘Two Prosecutors’ Will Feel Familiar in U.S., Eyes Stalin Purge Drama Follow-up

Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience.Generate Key Takeaways

Ukrainian director Sergei Loznitsa’s Two Prosecutors, his adaptation of Georgy Demidov’s eponymous novel, is set in the Soviet Union in 1937 during Stalin’s Great Purge and tells the story of a young local prosecutor and dedicated communist who starts to question his undying faith in the regime.

The film, which debuted at Cannes, has been playing in the 59th editionof theKarlovy VaryInternationalFilm Festival.

More from The Hollywood Reporter

Netflix Orders Live-Action Adaptation of Korean Fantasy Sensation 'Solo Leveling' With Byeon Woo-seok Set to Star

'Bidad' Review: In This Bracing Protest Drama, a Talented Singer Uses Her Voice to Take on the Iranian Regime

Six Questions About Where All the TikTok Drama Is Heading

AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R16e4kr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframe AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R26e4kr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframe

“I would like to continue with this topic, based on the same novel,” says Loznitsa of the film, which explores Stalin’s tyranny and totalitarianism more broadly, in an almost Kafkaesque way. “I would like to make my next film about the same repression system, but from the other side, from the side of the people who are prisoners, who were tortured and interrogated in prison. And about what kind of decisions they make because everybody knows that it’s all bullshit.”

The filmmaker points to authoritarian tactics that force innocent people admit to things they’ve never done. “It’s absolutely nonsense because the authorities know [these people] are innocent, but they were interrogated and pushed, beaten and asked to sign wrong confessions and statements like ‘I prepared this revolution. I work for, I don’t know, the Japanese Secret Service, and we dug a tunnel from London to Bombay. This is [actually] a real statement which was signed.”

The Orange Lampshade is the title that Loznitsa is envisioning for that movie. Why? “You will see,” he simply replied. But it sounds like it is a reference to a Soviet design feature of those times.

But first, Two Prosecutors is set to screen in cinemas in various parts of the world. Janus Films acquired the film for North America in Cannes but didn’t immediately detail a release date.

AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R1be4kr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframe AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R2be4kr8lb2m7nfddbH1» iframe

What does Loznitsa expect the U.S. audience’s reaction to be? “I think they will recognize recent times — the direction of America now with this authoritarian leader.”

Concluded Loznitsa: “It reflects this story, which is set in the 1930s, like 100 years ago, which means that not a lot of things have changed in the world, and people are not changing.”

Best of The Hollywood Reporter

The 40 Best Films About the Immigrant Experience

Wes Anderson’s Movies Ranked From Worst to Best

13 of Tom Cruise's Most Jaw-Dropping Stunts

Sign up for THR's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.