Pelym

The word ‘pelym‘ refers to the many isolated Russian hard labour camps that are renowned for their strict regimes and harsh living conditions. Pelym is also the name of a region on the edge of the Ural Mountains where these camps are located. The Polish filmmakers Andrzej Klamt and Ulrich Rydzewski speak with the prisoners and inhabitants of the surrounding area; a region where vodka flows liberally, being the only source of pleasure. After serving their time, some prisoners settle in Pelym, but not everyone prefers the freedom and solitude to the routine of the labour camps. Opposite these wandering ex-convicts, who have no idea how to live outside the camps and who repeatedly get into trouble — one prisoner even asserts he thinks back longingly to Stalin, because in his time things were at least clear -, there are other inhabitants of Pelym who do feel at home in the desolation, the stillness and the barrenness. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)