The Fencer – movie review

Based on fact comes The Fencer, a story about a man trying to escape his past. Fleeing from Stalin’s secret police in the early 1950s, an ambitious young fencer finds himself teaching small town children in a godforsaken Estonian coastal village.

Endel Nelis (Mart Avandi) arrives in Haapsalu having fled from Leningrad. His riding instructions from his friend are to stay under the radar. Nelis snares work as a teacher – a teacher who at first finds it difficult to relate to children. His job is to create a sports club for his students and he introduces them to sports with which they aren’t familiar, first skiing and later fencing. He also catches the eye of a fellow teacher, Kadri (Ursula Ratasepp). Gradually the students warm to him and he to them. Many of these pupils have lost their dads as a result of the Soviet occupation and Nelis becomes a father figure to them. In turn, fencing becomes a form of self-expression for the children and Endel is their role model, but that comes at a price.

Stories about encounters between children and adults have always interested Finnish director Klaus Härö. “Almost all of us can remember an adult whose presence or words at the right time in our  childhood have inspired or given us the crucial nudge in the right direction, helping us to realise a dream or pursue our dream job. “I had teachers who encouraged me to make films and I don’t think I would be a director without them,” Härö says. So, this is a movie dealing with people becoming who they are.

The Fencer is a slow-burn film that you are aware is manipulating you, but due to the manner in which it unfolds you are not unduly troubled by this. Mart Avandi plays the role well, insofar as Endel is portrayed as a man who internalises but grows. In other words, he has learned to keep his feelings in check and yet here, in this small town that he imagined he would detest, slowly he begins to thaw.

Everybody in this village is on edge. Laughter, humour and expressions of happiness are in short supply. We, the audience, are aware of the tension throughout and it becomes a question of whether anything can break that seemingly impenetrable nexus, which effectively means standing up to the Russian oppressors. The politics of the piece are straightforward enough, so much so that a few more surprises wouldn’t have gone astray. Anna Heinämaa’s script paints a morose picture of torment, from which a troubled man emerges with a newfound lease on life. Rated PG, The Fencer scores a 6½ to 7 out of 10.

Director: Klaus Härö
Cast: Mart Avandi, Kirill Käro, Martin Sensmeier, Lembit Ulfsak
Release Date: 24 November 2016
Rating: PG

Alex First