“You cannot look away from Darezhan Omirbaev's Student, as you can't look away from any of the Kazakh director's films.” - MUBI Notebook

Deemed by Jean-Luc Godard “one of the most outstanding film directors of today”, Darezhan Omirbayev continues his penchant for adapting classic Russian literature with this stripped - yet faithful - reinterpretation of Crime and Punishment.

Transporting the storyline to modern-day Kazakhstan, Omirbayev presents us with a philosophy student (played by one of the director's own filmmaking protégés) who commits a random act of murder while labouring under the strain of poverty and loneliness. However, his actions carry with them their own burden and - after falling for a girl - he must deal with his crisis of conscience.

“The overall social, political, and geographical context is so unique that it affords him the opportunity to spin the entire narrative in an uncharted direction… both accessible and stimulating.” - Screen Daily

D/S Darezhan Omirbayev P Limara Zheksembayeva WS Media Luna L Kazakh, Russian w/English subtitles TD DCP/2012