On Exhalation

Two years have passed since Sasha left the orphanage. It is difficult for her to adapt socially, she perceives the world as a hostile environment. Since childhood, the girl has been used to defending her right to life and solving problems through fights – she spends all her free time in the basement hall in the ring for fights without rules. Despite the fighting nature and hobbies, deep down Sasha dreams of exactly the opposite: not to cripple people, but to treat them. But there is no money for studying at a medical school, and they do not take people to a hospital without an education. Fate brings her together with a disabled teenager Kolya, whose mother is torn between her son, work at a fish factory and a policeman boyfriend, and tries to find a nurse for her son. This meeting radically changes the lives of all the heroes.

Directed by Rinat Makhmudov, On Exhalation leans on a strong ensemble — Anastasiya Samylova, Ivan Loginov, Elena Podkaminskaya — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about drama titles of 2022.