Notsolongago,Martinwasagiftedmathematicianwithacareerandasteadygirlfriend.Butafteraspellinpsychiatriccare,heisreleasedwithnojobandnowayofsupportinghimself,labelledasmentallyill.ViktorisayoungUkrainianboyrecentlyorphanedfollowinghismother'sOD.Whenthetwomeet,MartintakesVictorunderhiswing,andfleeingthecity,theyescapetoaforestwheretheymanagetobuildahutrobustenoughtolivein.Thoughnoteasy,theirback-to-naturesubsistencelifeisidyllicbycomparisontowhattheyhaveleftbehind,andthepairbecomefirmfriends.Martinevenmeetsasympatheticyoungwoman,Lena,whoheencouragestoliveinamoreidealisticway.ButjustasMartinhasstartedtofindhappiness,harshrealityintervenesÖDirectorHansWeingartnerisbestknownhereforhissecondfilm,TheEdukators,buthisnewfilmisclosertohisdebutfeature,TheWhiteNoise(LFF2000).Incommonwiththatfilm,HutintheWoodstakesaprogressiveviewofmentalillness,creatingbelievableandlikeablecharactersandtellingtheirstorywithempathyandanenviablelightnessoftouch.
SandraHebron
LondonFilmFestival