Fest Track On Sirk TV Film Review: THE EXECUTION [Fantastic Fest 2021 - Virtual]
The essence of serial killer movies balances in the aspect of a mystery that needs to be solved pursuing a culprit (who is usually specifically functional in puzzles and misdirects along sometimes with a high IQ and a high penchant for depravity). "The Execution", a new Russian crime thriller set in the late 80s and early 90s, is a hark back to films like "Se7vn" using the texture of haunted or burnt out cops chasing a predator that is never ending...and usually leads to their own dread. The film flips back and forth in time mostly between 1984 and 1991 as an inspector tries to track down a killer who stabs his female victims and then stuffs their mouth with soil. The aspect here is that the lead detective tracks down some interesting subjects, specifically one that in essence that turns out to be two. The psychological basis is quite intriguing in the texture of transference where the psychosis of one person imprints on another. The pathology is spoken of briefly and it is intriguing to see that in some ways the eventual outcome was rendered possible by experiments and brainwashing. So in this context there is a lot going on.
What is also interesting as well is watching not just the lead detective but his protege (not unlike "Se7en") as he begins to work outside the line trying to make the pieces fit when something is always missing. Treatment is word that is inherently used throughout the film almost as a threat, a negotiating contact or even a means of escape to reinforce or maybe disassemble a killer's psyche. In the middle of this, the detectives, especially the lead two, go down dark rabbit holes of their own psyche. These characters aren't altruistic but they will go to the farther reaches to get the job done even if it becomes their own noose in the end. In an intriguing structure decision, we so see some things happen before they are explained but it is almost if a reel had been replaced and then the reasoning of what has actually transpired starts to align.
However the younger protégé, as indicated, does go off on his own and the aspect of his interest, moral qualities and eventual clarity does create a bit of vagueness that gnaws a little bit in terms of character development. There is also a bit of sexual intrigue outside these investigations which circles back in but the game that is being played (though clear in the fact that the lady in the initiation of the relationship says "This is not going to end well") but in the end it simply serves a story ploy (which is fine). "The Execution" works its story in a multi-faceted haze with details coming at distinct pace but also letting certain actions and consequence wash over the audience. It doesn't operate on a true nail biter pace but does infuse dread and places the layers without needing to cross every t. Ultimately comeuppance depends on the path each character takes and while the dissemination of the cases clearly speaks to an endgame where the edges all fit together, sometimes the point is not as resonating as it should be. B-
By Tim Wassberg
