The film focuses on the story of a local Ukrainian family trapped at the epicenter of the crash of MH17. The actions unfold on July 17, 2014, in the village of Grabove, Donetsk region, near the Russian border.[4] The protagonists Irina and Anatoly are expecting their first child, as the war brutally invades their lives, along with the wreckage of a downed Boeing. The woman refuses to evacuate, even when armed groups occupy the village.
Art Directors — Maria Denisenko, Vitaly Sudarkov, Andrew Grechishkin
Composer — Zviad Mgebrishvili
Sound director — Sergeant Kurpiel
Costume designer — Victoria Filipova
Makeup artist — Ksenia Galchenko
Producers — Maryna Er Gorbach, Svyatoslav Bulakovsky, Mehmet Bahadir Er
Film production
The film project won the 11th State Cinema Competition held by Ukrainian State Film Agency. Additionally, in May 2021, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Turkey supported film production. The budget accounted for ₴25.9 million.[5] The casting was guided by Tanya Simon. Bosnian sound director Serjan Kurpiel and Georgian composer Zviad Mgebrishvili were also involved in the project. Under the terms of cooperation, 90% of post-production took place in Turkey.[6]
Reception
Critical response
As of November 2024[update]Klondike has an approval rating of 98% on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 40 reviews. The website's critics consensus states: "Klondike offers a bleak portrait of a war-torn Ukrainian village with the mordant wit of someone who understands that for civilians, the mundanities of life must go on".[7]Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 83 out of 100, based on 10 critics' reviews, indicating "generally favourable reviews".[8]
