‘Out of the present - Andrei Ujica’

Man’s place in the universe has never been contemplated the way it is in this singular film. Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev’s ten months on board of the Mir space station are captured in footage shots contrasted with images of the collapse of the Soviet Union. While Krikalev was away from earth, the empire that sent him ceased to exist and the nature of global affairs underwent massive change. “Yet, the extraterrestrial shots and scenes have the effect of dwarfing and distancing these historic events. Galaxies, like grains of sand, spread across the sky, and even the epochal sights of the collapse of the Soviet state shrivel in comparison.” (Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune)