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The Gulls

Name: The Gulls
Director: Ella Manzheeva
Released: 2015
Duration: 87 min

Representation Score

5.7/10

Fair

2015

Director

Ella Manzheeva

Runtime

87 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

The film excels as a localized character study centered around a non-Western identity. By incorporating the specific cultural elements of Kalmykia, it avoids the homogeneity often seen in mainstream cinema. Its strength lies in its nuanced portrayal of a woman's intellectual and emotional journey during a period of change. However, the narrative remains within a conventional framework, limiting its broader social scope due to a lack of diverse identity representation outside the main character.

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Category Breakdown

Does The Gulls have LGBTQ+ representation?

Limited

The film focuses on a traditional marriage and the protagonist's psychological isolation, without depicting explicit LGBTQ+ identities.

How does The Gulls portray gender?

Good

Elza is shown taking an active role as she deals with widowhood and unexpected pregnancy, moving beyond typical caregiver roles to explore her emotional journey.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The Gulls?

Good

Set in the Republic of Kalmykia, the film uses the unique ethnic and geographical features of the steppe to ground the story, avoiding Western-centric clichés.

How does The Gulls represent religion and culture?

Good

The story highlights the tension between local folklore and modern life, portraying traditional social structures as restrictive.

Does The Gulls include disability representation?

Minimal

The film does not depict any characters with physical or neurodivergent disabilities.

Present on Screen

Strong regional identity through the specific Kalmyk setting and local folklore.
Nuanced exploration of a woman's emotional and intellectual journey.
Avoids Western-centric cinematic clichés by centering a non-Anglo-Saxon context.

Limited or Absent

Lack of explicit LGBTQ+ representation or queer perspectives.
Limited scope regarding disability or neurodivergent characters.

Official Synopsis

Elza lives in a small town in the Republic of Kalmykia on the Caspian Sea. Another year comes to an end, it’s cold and the steppe is covered in a thin layer of snow. When her husband, who makes a living from illegal fishing, asks her one night what she did during the day, she lies. She wasn’t at her mother’s, but at the bus stop. She thought of leaving – to find out what it might be to escape the infinite expanse of her dreary small world. But she didn’t dare; instead she stays and withdraws into herself, unconcerned by who might see. One day, her husband doesn’t return from a dangerous boat trip. It is said that a fisherman only returns if he has a woman waiting for him and that seagulls are the souls of the missing. At the start of a somewhat unplanned pregnancy, widowed and alone, Elza wanders ever further through the city, plotting a path between tradition and the contemporary until she’s no longer on familiar ground.

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