Synopsis

Ali, the coach of a rowing team, is in the middle of a real life crisis. He can’t stand his wife Leyla, and if it weren’t for his son Ruslan, he would have eloped with his mistress Sasha a long, long time ago. By means of scary outbursts, he can’t restrain himself from taking out his frustration on either his wife or his son, who is also part of his team and not able to meet his father’s high expectations. The conflict escalates when Ali kicks the boy off the team right before a race. Following this incident, Ali is shocked when he gets bad news: Ruslan has drowned while swimming in the river. Driven by his guilty conscience, the protagonist starts his search of his son’s dead body that was washed away by the current. Ali’s quest soon turns into a trip to self-discovery. Down the River is a lifelike told drama about a dysfunctional family. Mutual expectations and dependencies seem to overwhelm and crush the main characters who are deeply and increasingly disappointed with each other. Director Asif Rustamov accomplishes to embed the profound story with imposing visual imagery and stirring soundtrack into a magnificent framework. Especially impressive are the breathtakingly idyllic landscape views contrasting with the rather dark story, but thus placing even greater emphasis on the emotional moments in the film.

Guests

Asif Rustamov

Asif Rustamov
Director, writer, editor Down The River 
In Vienna: October 8-11

Samaya Asgarova

Samaya Asgarova
International Affairs Specialist Azerbaijanfilm Nabat and Down The River
In Vienna: October 5-11

Mushfig Hatamov

Mushfig Hatamov
CEO Azerbaijanfilm  Producer Nabat and Down The River
In Vienna: October 5-10