Olga

Released Jun 24, 2022

1h 27m

Drama

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Olga (Anastasia Budiashkina) is a talented teenage Ukrainian gymnast exiled in Switzerland, dreaming of Olympic gold and trying to fit in with her new team in her new home. As she prepares for the European Championships, the Ukrainian people back home in Kyiv rise up in what has become known as the Maidan Revolution, suddenly involving everyone she cares about. Olga is left a powerless, distant bystander as her mother, an investigative journalist, faces danger as she challenges the brutal Yanukovich regime. Incorporating documentary footage from the 2013 uprising, Olga is a tense, sensitively handled tale of exile reflecting the clash between the personal and the political in a young woman's search for identity.

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Premiered Aug 17

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Edward Porter

Times (UK)

... This Ukrainian drama has an engrossing story.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 24, 2022

Full Review

Dmitry Samarov

Chicago Reader

A skillful but flawed portrait of amateur sports on the global stage that doesn’t quite stick the landing.

Jul 1, 2022

Full Review

Peter Debruge

Variety

Even before Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked invasion, "Olga" was an incredibly strong film, but now, the Kino Lorber release should be considered essential viewing for art-house audiences.

Jun 27, 2022

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Simon Miraudo

Movie Squad (RTRFM 92.1)

A really impressive and taut character drama about the single-minded determination required for athletic success, and how sports is political, anyway you slice it.

Rated: 4/5

May 5, 2023

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Julian Wood

FILMINK (Australia)

… bold and thoughtful …

Rated: 17/20

Apr 19, 2023

Full Review

Sarah Boslaugh

TheArtsStl

Olga, the first feature film by Elie Grappe, presents a realistic picture of high-level gymnastics training, aided by excellent, unfussy cinematography by Lucie Baudinaud and expert editing by Suzana Pedro.

Rated: 7/10

Dec 8, 2022

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brent m

What's one to do when caught between the fulfillment of personal achievement or taking a stand for a larger cause? What's more, what's one to do when the available choices are compounded by complications that make it difficult to decide and subsequently act? Such is the conundrum for a talented 15-year-old gymnast who's the daughter of a Ukrainian mother and a Swiss father while she trains for the 2014 European Championships in Switzerland as the deadly Maidan Revolt rages in her homeland. Should she remain afar and continue with her training, or should she return to Ukraine to join the fight with her investigative journalist mother and activist best friend/former teammate? It's a lot to consider for someone of any age, but, for a gifted adolescent, it's an exceedingly exasperating choice, especially when she's also forced to address the additional issues of jealous teammates, injury and deciding which country to devote her loyalty. Writer-director Elie Grappe's debut feature walks a perilous, tension-filled tightrope in telling a taut, compelling story that successfully fuses the political thriller and sports drama genres, featuring a superb lead performance by former Ukrainian gymnast Anastasia Budiashkina. Admittedly, there are a few under-explained gaps in the narrative that detract from the flow of the story, and some of the atmospheric cinematography definitely could have been improved upon. However, when it comes to the elements that matter most, it's easy to see how this offering captured the SACD Prize at the 2021 Cannes Critics' Week and also earned nominations for the film festival's Golden Camera Award and Critics' Week Grand Prize. "Olga" may not have attracted a lot of attention in its initial theatrical release, but it should have and definitely deserves to now that it's available for streaming. Give it a look – you won't be disappointed.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Valerii Ege D

Olga is just one of the innocent people caught in the Ukraine-Russia conflict that has been going on since 2014. Even though she is far away from the events, her mind always stays on her hometown, where she was dying to escape. If the events never happened, Ukraine would have been a country she visited occasionally. However, the war raises her nationalist feelings at a young age, causing her to make decisions that will completely change her future. These feelings are not exaggerated in the movie. The fact that the subject is not dramatized too much, that the director does not interfere with the film too much, and that the fictional additions he has added are successful causes the film to flow like water. The movie, which can be boring for someone who has nothing to do with the subject, will give many things to think about for people who become part of this conflict.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

09/05/22

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Elie Grappe

Director

Anastasia Budiashkina

Olga

Sabrina Rubtsova

Sasha

Caterina Barloggio

Steffi

Thea Brogli

Zoé

Tanya Mikhina

Ilona

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Olga: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Olga (Anastasia Budiashkina) is a talented teenage Ukrainian gymnast exiled in Switzerland, dreaming of Olympic gold and trying to fit in with her new team in her new home. As she prepares for the European Championships, the Ukrainian people back home in Kyiv rise up in what has become known as the Maidan Revolution, suddenly involving everyone she cares about. Olga is left a powerless, distant bystander as her mother, an investigative journalist, faces danger as she challenges the brutal Yanukovich regime. Incorporating documentary footage from the 2013 uprising, Olga is a tense, sensitively handled tale of exile reflecting the clash between the personal and the political in a young woman's search for identity.

Director: Elie Grappe
Screenwriter: Elie Grappe, Raphaëlle Desplechin
Distributor: Kino Lorber
Production Co: Point Prod, RTS - Radio Télévision Suisse, Cinémadefacto
Genre: Drama
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 24, 2022, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 23, 2022
Box Office (Gross USA): $12.5K
Runtime: 1h 27m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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