When Sergei and Natalia go to Sweden seeking political asylum they are hoping to be safe from the attacks that have left Sergei scarred, When their request is denied first one daughter then the other slips into a coma like state brought on by the stress.
Resignation Syndrome is a very real malady that is being suffered by refugee children who are under a lot of stress. The stress causes the children to go into a shut down mode as their bodies simply turn off, unable to handle the fact that they do not feel safe.
This is a good but very formal look at a family struggling to deal with a very difficult situation. Shot in long takes and often framed in tableaux the film plays out as being incredibly clinical. We are on the outside looking in.
I'm not certain that the clinical or formal approach is what this film needs. Yes the characters are largely bottled up, something that brought on the comas in the children, but they are so hard to connect to. Everyone is largely trying to but on a brave or official face and it makes it hard to truly feel for the people. There feeling of life as lived. Every thing, every moment is perfect. I felt cold and I never cared.
This is an important story trapped in a clinically formal box.
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