Overview
A family's resilience is tested as war encroaches on their home, leading to an unimaginable tragedy.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Brutal
- bleak
- mordant
- tense
- political film night
- arthouse cinema viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as a bleak, formally striking, and mordantly humane portrait of Ukrainian civilians trapped inside geopolitical violence.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Irka and Tolik attempt to continue family life while armed forces seize their village and an international air disaster unfolds nearby.
The family home and surrounding village are marked by the physical disruption of war, including the central rupture that compromises their house.
The critical consensus specifically identifies mordant wit and the persistence of mundane civilian life in the war-torn village.
The story moves toward the July 17, 2014 air-crash catastrophe associated with Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 while keeping the family’s perspective central.
Films like Klondike, and why
The Death of Stalin
shared civilian perspective on armed conflict, bleak realism, and mordant wartime humor
The Painted Bird
shared intimate family drama, regional violence, and politically charged historical trauma
Land of Mine
shared war-torn rural setting, civilian endurance, and restrained devastating drama
Quo Vadis, Aida?
shared documentary-like realism, family vulnerability, and the human cost of geopolitical conflict
Movie Details
- Director
- Maryna Er Gorbach
- Release Date
- 2022-05-05
- Runtime
- 100 min
- Rating
- 6.7 / 10 (52)
Cast
- Oksana Cherkashyna
- Serhii Shadrin
- Oleh Scherbyna
- Oleh Shevchuk
- Artur Aramyan
- Yevhen Yefremov
- Oleg Shcherbina
- Nadir Samedov
- Anatolij Ohorodnyk
- Amdrii Iaroshevskii
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, Klassiki, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Klondike about?
- A Ukrainian couple struggles to preserve family life as war overtakes their border village and a global aviation catastrophe tears through its fragile reality.
- What is Klondike like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Klondike as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Klondike violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Klondike as brutal.
- What did critics think of Klondike?
- Critics broadly praised the film as a bleak, formally striking, and mordantly humane portrait of Ukrainian civilians trapped inside geopolitical violence.
- Which films are like Klondike?
- Films with a similar feel include The Death of Stalin, The Painted Bird, Land of Mine, and Quo Vadis, Aida?.
- How long is Klondike?
- Klondike runs 100 minutes.
- Where can I watch Klondike?
- In United States, Klondike streams on Amazon Prime Video, Klassiki, Amazon Prime Video with Ads.
