Sharunas Bartas is one my favorite directors. In my humble opinion Eastern Drift (2010) is his best work, wich he directed, writen and stared himself. His movies been selected into Cannes festival for as long as I can remember.
At Dusk is a film about post WW2 era when Soviets were occupying Lithuania. (NKVD) were ragging through Lithunian country land. Trying to establish a new rule and dealing with some partisan movement in some areas.
Movie folows Jurgis Pliauga played by Arvydas Dapsys who has very dificult relationship with people arround him. A modest farmstead owner whom we get to know throughout the film & A group of partisans (Forest Brothers) who hides in the forest from NKVD.
Film establishes a very slow pace and some action at the end of the film. Wich a little reminded me of another Barta's movie Peace to Us in Our Dreams. Movie dont really show any heroic action from partisans or the cruelty of Soviet invaders. Instead focuses on Day to Day lives of ordinary people in these harsh times.
Read several reviews on how this film is Russian desinformation against Lithuanian partisans wich dont make any sense really. I dont understand where they get this idea from... Movie dont paint soviets as liberators. Yes movie shows partisans do some killings themselfs against their countrymen who tend to work with the other side (NKVD) I guess that is what gave them this idea of propoganda. Other reviewer called that Lithaunian films have some Lithuanian-ish dramatism in them. Wich is soo true. And theres a lot of that in this film.
