In the opening scene of the film, we see the older brother (Andrey) and his younger sibling (Ivan) messing around with their friends and playing by the seaside. The group of children are challenging each other into jumping from a high tower into the water, and here we get introduced to the two main characters “the brothers” and witness the vulnerability of (Ivan) as he refuses to jump and expresses fear of heights. His brother moves on and jumps with the rest of their friends and leaves Ivan behind while he is feeling ashamed, embarrassed, and questioning his masculinity. In this scene we are exposed to nature of children characteristics and how vulnerable they can be and how small simple actions can affect them deeply.

We then see the two brothers with their friends again as they are fighting with each other in front of their friends when Andrey call his brother a coward, we follow the brothers as they run after each other all the way home when they are being stopped by their mother in the front door telling them to keep quite cause their father “came back home.”.

Here where the story of the film starts to unfold itself, when we are being introduced to the nature of the household of this family as the two brothers’ father wasn’t part of their lives for as long as they can remember, they actually cannot recognize him if they saw him on the street or anywhere else. The father from the first shot that appears in the opening scene represents, the unknown, fear, anxiety, unpredictability, anger, and lose. He is the male figure the two brothers have been longing to have but he is much more than that, he is not that solider the family awaits his arrival on Christmas eve, he is the exact opposite. He is cold hearted, and unpredictable. He is everything a child wish their father not to be like, especially after not having him around for that long.

We see through Ivan’s and his brother eyes the complexity of how much it is a traumatic experience to have their father suddenly appear in their lives. The director made a whole theme to the film using all the cinematic elements there is to be and he did it wonderfully. The choice of the color scheme of the film was brilliant. Using all those shades of greys, and blues from the begging of the film to its ending created a beautiful portrait of the mixed-up sad emotions the children went throughout the journey they had with their father.

The movie takes the viewer and puts him into a specific emotional state, it doesn’t focus much on the plot, it has a slow rhythm, little dialogue but takes us into a magnificent character’s arch. We see how Ivan developed from the beginning of the film to the end of it when he challenges his father with a knife and speaks his mind out, defending his older brother and not being afraid of the consequences.

In the closing scene the two brothers character arch is completely shaped, we see the actual physical result and outcome that journey did to them as very innocent young children. When they put their father’s body into the boat and the waves moves the boat into the middle of the sea while they are packing their stuff in the car. A shout comes from Andrey saying “Babaa!!” when he sees the boat moving and going farther into the sea, both of the brothers start shouting with their full voices “Baba, Baba”. here we are back to the start point, that even after all what they encountered in that journey from being emotionally abused from their father they still long to have a male family figure to provide warmth and create beautiful memories with.

The movie the return (2003) with it is very sad story resembles the many forms of a father/ son relationship and how it may affect the children deeply. It is visually wonderful. The cinematography of the nature side was brilliant and the choices of locations and soundtrack supported the theme of the film, the destructed sights and the use of dim lighting was right on point.

I am writing this review after watching this movie three times. And it keeps on putting me into that depressing emotional state the children were living in that complexed journey. If you are looking for a film that explores the real, honest side of family relationships, especially the father/ son relationship type, this movie will be the perfect choice for you as it is dark, honest, but overall, beautifully made.