AFI Fest Review: Poland’s Oscar Submission ‘Under the Volcano’

War has devastating effects on so many, with casualties far higher than just those who lose their lives. Being away from home can prove fortunate and life-saving, but also brings with it a sense of guilt and powerlessness, not in harm’s way but also not present for critical, transformative developments. Under the Volcano is set at the beginning of one of the most prominent conflicts still raging today, the war in Ukraine, following one family at the tail end of their vacation whose world is rocked and they find themselves unable to return home.

Roman (Roman Lutskyi) and Anastasiia (Anastasiya Karpenko) are in Tenerife, Spain, with Roman’s children Sofia (Sofia Berezovska) and Fedir (Fedir Pugachov), preparing to check out of their island resort and head back to Ukraine. When they see news of Russia’s attack and head to the airport, they find no flights out and return to their hotel. Unable to find a way home, they wander around touristy areas struggling to find a sense of purpose and navigating brewing conflict that emerges as they each try to deal with the situation without having any true ability to change anything.

There is a starkness to this film that functions just as strongly as dialogue and story developments. These four people are on vacation with whatever amenities they may need, and all they can do to connect with what’s happening back home is watch on their cell phones. They only have leisure clothes with them, and need something to do to fill their time, even if exploring and walking through the beautiful landscape feels wholly inappropriate at such a devastating time. The resort generously comps their rooms and meals for the duration of their stay because they understand that they are suffering, but it’s difficult to both enjoy their circumstances and feel as if they are indeed suffering when they are so far from the conflict itself.

While its premise is very specific and relevant to what’s happening today, it does extract meaning that can be applied to so many situations throughout history. A friend of Sofia’s asks her why she’s stopped posting pictures of her Canary Islands vacation on Instagram, telling her that the escape is proving healthy and necessary for her, but Sofia doesn’t feel right continuing to do so when she’s glued to the news and where her friends back home aren’t able to enjoy any sense of safety, let alone freely and frivolously explore a new place.

Filmmaker Damian Kocur’s sophomore feature is a sobering look at ordinary people caught in an extraordinary situation in which they remain completely ordinary, identifiable only to those who can hear their accents and might catch them speaking Ukrainian (or, more often, exposing themselves when they hear Russian being casually uttered by diners around them). There is tension simmering due to Sofia being a teenager, Fedir being a child not fully aware of how to behave, and Roman attempting to be an alpha male, insisting on navigating through a place he’s never been when Anastasiia would simply have asked for directions. This all exists before the new stress of not being able to come home brings it all to the surface.

This film boasts four quality performances and a keen cinematic eye from Kocur that speaks loudest in its straightforward presentation of its main characters in the most normal of locations. Submitted by Poland as its Oscar submission for Best International Feature, this film, which made its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, is indeed an international endeavor, combining multiple languages to show the way in which local and regional conflicts can play out abroad. Its characters feel real and three-dimensional, worthy enough of their own story even without its equally compelling and thought-provoking backdrop.

Movie Rating: 8/10

Awards Buzz: Poland has a strong history with the Oscars, nominated thirteen times, winning in 2014 for Ida. Its most recent nomination was in 2022 for EO, and the unfortunately still-timely nature of this film may propel it to a spot on the shortlist. Without a recognizable director or cast, however, it’s still an underdog, but a nomination is very possible.