Grim and depressing

Rating: 7/10 (23 April 2015)

In 1950s Russia, a serial killer is killing children. However, as Stalin has declared murder to be a "capitalist disease", these killings are explained away as accidents. War hero secret police officer Leo finds himself drawn in to the killings but, in a culture of paranoia and people informing on each other, he is not without his own problems.
This suspense thriller very effectively conjures up a grim, grey society where everyone is looking over his shoulder, and with good reason – life is very cheap if you happen to come up against the wrong person. The principal players - Tom Hardy as Leo, Noomi Rapace as his wife Raisa, Gary Oldman as General Nesterov, and Joel Kinnaman as Vasili – are all very good.
Unfortunately, that's not enough. The film is very long – two and a quarter hours – and the murder investigation gets somewhat overlooked as the film concentrates on the political implications of work carried out in Leo's department, and the consequences of in-fighting and crossing the wrong person. The film is slow-moving and somewhat depressing.
It's not a bad film, but it's not one I shall be eagerly seeking to watch a second time.