The Banishment (2007) - gigantic failure by a giant

All the things that worked so nicely in The Return just don't work here. Symbols are not hinted at, but thrown into your face, either by reciting the Scripture or by showing a jigsaw puzzle. Everywhere the pointer, see - there is another symbol. Don't miss it.
Zvyagintsev is a great artist, so this film fails altogether on a high level, though it's potentially a timeless drama. Visually captivating, but dramatically misconstrued. Alex brings his wife Vera and their two children to his childhood home somewhere in the countryside. Vera reveals that she is pregnant, but that Alex is not the father of the baby. Alex is devastated, of course. At last they agree to abort the bastard child - Vera dies during the operation. It is later revealed that this abortion might have been assisted suicide. Yes, the marriage between them is not working out, we have understood that.
Even later it is revealed that Alex is the physical father, but not not the metaphysical father of that aborted child. And this is the main flaw of the script, when it transcends from mythical, mystical, existentialist to ridiculous. Come on, Andrey - you can do better than that.
I am looking forward to Leviathan in the new year.