Russia, February 13, 2026
Photo: foma.ru
The beloved Orthodox film The Island (Ostrov) is returning to theaters in Russia this year as it marks its 20th anniversary, reports artmoskovia.ru.
The film, which has resonated deeply with Orthodox audiences worldwide, first premiered in 2006 at the opening of the 17th Kinotavr Film Festival. It was the first Russian film in history to serve as the closing film of the 63rd Venice Film Festival. In 2007, it received six Golden Eagle awards and six Nika awards, including Best Feature Film, Best Director, Best Male Performance, and Best Cinematography.
The film stars the late cult actor and musician Petr Mamonov in the lead role of Fr. Anatoly. Director Pavel Lungin explained his casting choice: “There was always a holy foolishness in him. Mamonov didn’t so much play Fr. Anatoly as play himself. When we filmed the prayer, it was an extremely intimate moment. It wasn’t acting—Petr prayed the way he prays daily. I’ve never seen anything like it in cinema before.”
Viktor Sukhorukov, who played Fr. Philaret, the childlike and innocent monastery abbot, said: “For me the central scene was in the boiler room, where the film’s main character, Fr. Anatoly, tests my character with fire and smoke... He seems to force Fr. Philaret to emerge from oblivion. For me, Fr. Philaret’s drama lies in his deep delusion: he thinks he’s already made a deal with God and reserved himself a place in Paradise. But it turns out that our faith isn’t only in reading the Gospel. Not only in vigils and fasts. There’s something else.”
Dmitry Dyuzhev portrayed a Church careerist in a vivid and almost comedic performance: “With this picture, Pavel Lungin wanted to pose questions about faith, about miracles—about how you understand this, what you believe in, and where you see true miracles. And not only for viewers, but first of all for the actors, this film was a spiritual journey, a spiritual experience. And we were sincere in this journey. Perhaps that’s why a miracle happened with the film itself—without any hope for popularity, without any hope of finding understanding, suddenly after the premiere there was such resonance, everyone started talking about it.”
The film’s cinematography by Andrei Zhegalov captures the majestic and ascetic beauty of northern nature and the most subtle and elevated emotions on the actors’ faces. The minimalist and thoughtful musical score by composer Vladimir Martynov has been widely recognized by critics and audiences as one of the most powerful soundtracks in recent times.
Follow OrthoChristian on Facebook, Twitter, Vkontakte, Telegram, WhatsApp, MeWe and Gab!
