The Edge

2010 1h 55m RU

😐

5.8

MID

★5.8TMDB · 62

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The action takes place shortly after the end of the Second World War in the Siberian hinterland, among Russians and Germans with damaged personal stories and a strange transformation: the victors seem to be crawling into the skins of the defeated, and vice versa. Ignat, is the embodiment of the larger-than-life image of the Soviet victorious warrior who, in fact, proves to be shell-shocked, sick and broken, although not completely destroyed. Trains become fetish for the heroes of the film, and speed becomes a mania; they virtually become one with their steam engines, while the machines take on human names. The heroes set up an almost fatal race in the Siberian forest, risking their own lives and those of others.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Vladimir Mashkov
Ignat
Anjorka Strechel
Elsa
Yulia Peresild
Sofya
Sergey Garmash
Fishman
Oleksiy Horbunov
Kolyvanov
Vyacheslav Krikunov
Stepan
Aleksandr Bashirov
Zhilkin
Evgeniy Tkachuk
Borka

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Alexey Uchitel
Languages: Russian
Countries: Russia

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 49% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 16 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Alexey Uchitel, shot by Yury Klimenko. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by David Holmes. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Gleb Nikulsky shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Vladimir Mashkov and Anjorka Strechel and Yulia Peresild carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt1706414 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 62 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Alexey Uchitel directs. Yury Klimenko behind the camera. David Holmes scores. Gleb Nikulsky cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in Russia. Dialogue in Russian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 49% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
2Released 16 years ago.
3Directed by Alexey Uchitel, shot by Yury Klimenko. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by David Holmes. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Gleb Nikulsky shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Vladimir Mashkov and Anjorka Strechel and Yulia Peresild carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt1706414 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 62 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Yury Klimenko
Original score: David Holmes
Editing: Gleb Nikulsky
Production design: Eldar Karkhalev
Costume design: Mark Lee
VFX supervisor: Ilya Lindberg
Sound: Konstantin Zalesskiy
Stunt coordinator: Oleg Korytin
Runtime: 115 min · 1h 55m
Status: Released
Budget: $11,000,000
Box office: $5,380,142
Return: 49% of budget
Original language: RU
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: The Edge (2010)

Also by

Alexey Uchitel

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2019-10-16
★ 8/10
Locomotive Breath in Siberia just after WW2 In 1945 a disgraced Red Army train engineer, Ignat (Vladimir Mashkov), is assigned to a Labor Camp in Siberia, which houses former Soviet POWs that Stalin assumed collaborated with the enemy and need “re-educated.” His status immediately wins the affection of the in-house babe (Yulia Peresild), but Ignat sets his eyes on an abandoned steam engine cut off from use because of a washed-out bridge. The problem is a German refugee, Elsa (Anjorka Strechel), is using the locomotive as her residence. Then there’s the issue of getting the engine back across the broken bridge. Released in 2010, “The Edge” (or “Kray” transliterated from Russian) is a Russian film with English subtitles. If you favor (generally) realistic films that deal with trains or the northern wilderness, such as “The Way Back” (2010), “Transsiberian” (2008), “Dr. Zhivago” (1965) and “Runaway Train” (1985), I encourage you to check it out (a quality print is available on Youtube). The film dares to make a German female in postwar Russia a potential heroine and possible love interest. People forget that German citizens like her were just as much victims of the war, which is easy to overlook amidst the horror of Nazi invasion. This is a superb adventure drama with authentic locations and steam engines. It’s simultaneously brutal, adventurous, dramatic and amusing. Train lovers should eat it up. The film runs approximately 2 hours and was shot in Russia. GRADE: B+

Production companies