Marrakech Film Festival 2024: Under the Volcano

Under the Volcano, the second feature film from Damian Kocur, sees a Ukrainian family’s holiday in Tenerife turn into disaster when Russia invades their country just before they were set to return to Kyiv. As the anxiety and fear continue to simmer over the next few days, tensions grow amongst the familial unit while the other tourists around them enjoy their own holidays as if nothing were going on. Led by outstanding performances from the central cast, Kocur has crafted an effective, if sometimes self-indulgent, feature which captures how ordinary people cope with a frightening situation.

When viewers first meet the family, their Spanish getaway is as mundane as every other family holiday: Roman (Roman Lutskyi) quibbles with his wife Nastia (Anastasia Karpenko) about where to park, teenager Sofia (Sofia Berezovska) bats away advances from boys, and a tearful Fedir (Fedir Pugachov) is consoled by his father after accidentally biting his tongue. It’s all incredibly naturalistic in its presentation, which only serves to make the imminent events resonate even more.

Everything changes when Sofia spots updates on her phone later that night. From here, the carefree summer spirit is replaced with terror. Although the family do their best to distract themselves with day trips to keep their minds off the bombings, their worries nevertheless bleed into their relationships with each other. Roman and Nastia’s arguments become intense, which consequently drives a wedge between them and the children. Likewise, uneasy glances towards Russian guests staying at the resort become more confrontational as time goes on.

The emotional turmoil the characters go through is handled subtly by the filmmaker, with most of the work being done by stunning turns from the main actors. Although the film is light on plot, small moments like Roman and Sofia bonding over music speak volumes. Clever imagery also plays a key role in conveying atmosphere. A group of merry holidaymakers dancing in a circle around the family as they read the news about which cities have been hit underscores the surreal nature of their situation. Sometimes Kocur lingers on the visual metaphors for too long, stretching the already slow pacing after viewers have understood their meaning.

Under the Volcano isn’t a perfect film, but it is an atmospheric portrait of an everyday family dealing with their lives being turned upside down.

Andrew Murray

Under the Volcano does not have a release date yet.