My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow

Julia Loktev & Anna Nemzer (co-director)
United States | 2024 | 324 min
Swiss Premiere
Language : Russian
Subtitles : English, French

What begins as an intimate portrait of Russian independent journalists facing persecution by Putin’s regime takes a drastic turn when Russia starts a full-scale war in Ukraine and they are all forced into exile. Julia Loktev’s new opus offers a striking yet chilling, front row seat insight into how authoritarianism functions, and the lives of those who resist.

Autumn 2021. Julia Loktev, a U.S. citizen born in the Soviet Union, travels to Moscow to visit her friend, journalist Anna Nemzer, who hosts a talk show on the last remaining opposition TV channel. Around her orbit Ksenia, Sonia, Olga, and other young female journalists, all harassed by the Putin regime, even in their private lives. In recent months, any person or organisation aligned with the opposition has been labelled a “foreign agent,” essentially branded a traitor to the nation. Raids, 18-month “preventive detentions,” and beatings have become routine. In February 2022, Russia invades Ukraine. The noose tightens around those who still believe in a glimmer of hope within the authoritarian regime, continuing their mission to inform, even at the risk of their lives. “The village lunatics,” jokes Anna. “It’s like something out of Harry Potter,” Ksenia quips. With camera in hand and heart pounding, Julia Loktev is drawn into this downward spiral—a surreal machine of oppression where every minute feels as though it could be the last.
Aurélien Marsais

My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow, 2024
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