Petrov's Flu

[AtlàntidaFF '22] There is a provocative look that is reflected in this journey between hallucination and reality, easy to get lost in this labyrinth in which the fever provoke dark images and surprising stories. More chaotic in the first part and more focused on the later stories, it's a subversive vision of Russian society, a representation of chaos and violence, which is real, but wants to be shown as imagined.

Like a SpongeBob popsicle, it's amazing how much it doesn't look like what it is.

Petrov's Fever is a road trip with no road, just a winding path that goes nowhere, and you'd think it'd take less than 2 ½ hours to not go anywhere.

It's the story of a Russian guy and his family who have the flu and experience a series of fever dreams and flashbacks that are so surreal they struggle to hold the audience's attention during its +2.5-hour run time. Maybe if you think of it as an anthology film of anecdotes you'll succeed in staying longer than those who walked out of my screening.

(Note: The cinematography is actually quite stunning, and won an award at this year's Cannes Film Festival.)