Rule of Two Walls

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1:59

Rule of Two Walls

Released Aug 16

1h 17m

Documentary

War

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20 Reviews

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Fewer than 50 Ratings

RULE OF TWO WALLS is an intimate look at the war in Ukraine, as seen through the eyes of Ukrainian artists who remained in their country to make art as a defiant act in the face of aggression. The film presents the invasion of Ukraine as a war of memory, identity and truth. Using live music performance, painting, street art, and the act of filmmaking itself, it aims to illuminate the psychological frontlines of the crisis: how to go to a restaurant or bar amid the near-constant blare of air-raid alarms and missile strikes; how to process, react, and resist, while having to go about the rhythms of daily life. Blurring the lines between what is seen in front of and behind the camera, the film probes what it means to make cinema in a time of war.

Peter Rainer

FilmWeek (KPCC - NPR Los Angeles)

It expresses not only the violence but the patriotism and perseverance of these artists in the face of all this devastation. It's really quite a moving film.

Nov 13, 2024

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Carlos Aguilar

Variety

With the concise, but still singularly haunting Rule of Two Walls, Ukrainian American director David Gutnik has assembled a collection of portraits highlighting the experiences of artists from across the country who’ve found shelter in the city of Lviv.

Nov 4, 2024

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Christian Zilko

indieWire

Everyone is smart enough to understand that art won’t actually win the war, but it gives the nation something worth fighting for. And even if things take a turn for the absolute worst, they see the importance of leaving behind artifacts of their cause.

Rated: B+

Oct 26, 2024

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Clara Cuccaro

In Review Online

In a Rule of Two Walls, people come first and the war comes second.

Sep 7, 2024

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Leslie Combemale

AWFJ.org

Gutnik does a great job, by showing Ukrainian art and culture and the artists creating it, of showing the world who the Ukrainians are and why they fight.

Rated: 5/5

Sep 6, 2024

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Stephen Silver

The SS Ben Hecht

Even better, it’s a Ukraine doc that doesn’t feature Sean Penn or Bernard Henri-Levy wandering around Kyiv and making themselves the center of attention.

Sep 6, 2024

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Brandon W

I went to a screening a couple weeks ago and the film blew me away. A confluence of art, survival, and humanity, the film unveils a face of war rarely if ever seen, splicing the inspiring stories of survivors with visceral footage from the front lines and testimonials from the filmmakers themselves. It is a truly unique film that not only explores the theme but is itself a defiant counter punch to the military aggression and efforts to whitewash Ukrainian heritage and culture.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/13/24

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Rule of Two Walls: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

RULE OF TWO WALLS is an intimate look at the war in Ukraine, as seen through the eyes of Ukrainian artists who remained in their country to make art as a defiant act in the face of aggression. The film presents the invasion of Ukraine as a war of memory, identity and truth. Using live music performance, painting, street art, and the act of filmmaking itself, it aims to illuminate the psychological frontlines of the crisis: how to go to a restaurant or bar amid the near-constant blare of air-raid alarms and missile strikes; how to process, react, and resist, while having to go about the rhythms of daily life. Blurring the lines between what is seen in front of and behind the camera, the film probes what it means to make cinema in a time of war.

Director: David Gutnik
Producer: Olga Beskhmelnitsyna, Sam Bisbee, Stacey Reiss
Screenwriter: David Gutnik
Distributor: Monument Releasing
Production Co: Stacey Reiss Productions, 2Brave Productions, Park Pictures, Illuminated Content
Genre: Documentary, War
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 16, 2024, Limited
Runtime: 1h 17m

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