Ascent Blu-ray

'The Ascent' Director: Larisa Shepitko (1977) Criterion Collection Blu-ray | 4K restoration | Russian w/ English subtitles

Uncompromising but poetic war film, with moments of religious allegory, set in Nazi occupied Belarus. A pair of partisans set out into a blizzard to acquire supplies for their comrades. When captured they face committing betrayal or choosing martyrdom.  

Special features include:
- Selected-scene commentary featuring film scholar Daniel Bird
- Introduction by Anton Klimov, son of director Larisa Shepitko and filmmaker Elem Klimov
- Interview with actor Lyudmila Polyakova
- The Homeland of Electricity (1967) short by Shepitko
- Larisa (1980) posthumous short film tribute to Shepitko made by her husband, Elem Klimov
- Two documentaries from 2012 about Shepitko
- Program from 1999 featuring interview with Shepitko
- Essay by poet Fanny Howe