Dying babies. Dead bodies. Mass graves. Shelled maternity wards. War crimes. 20 Days in Mariupol is not for the faint of heart. It is however an urgent and unblinking reminder of the atrocities occurring to this day in Ukraine, with director Mstyslav Chernov documenting indiscriminate violence in horrifying detail. This makes for a documentary that’s a necessary but exceedingly difficult watch. Chernov documents the horrors of war waged on the civilians of Mariupol with the resolute courage of a wartime journalist and the pressing eye of a documentarian, making for a glimpse inside the war in Ukraine that’s utterly horrifying while also being must-watch. Extremely heavy stuff. (B+)
Capsule Review for Seattle International Film Festival 2023.
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▶ Streaming on Kanopy. More picks: The Best Movies on Kanopy Right Now →
By: Matt Oakes
Started blogging about film in college when the university paper wouldn’t have him. Dislikes your consensus film Twitter favorites. Devotee of horror movies that make him die a little inside. Catches films at festivals when he can. Proud SFCS and OFCS member and Tomatometer-approved critic. Editor-in-chief of Silver Screen Riot.
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