Stanislavs Tokalov: Everything Will Be Alright

At the Latvian National Film Awards ceremony the other day two awards were given to “Everything Will Be Alright” by Stanislav Tokalov. The film-to-be was pitched at the Baltic Sea Docs 2021 with the working title “Stranded” and described as “An attempt to look at the life of a half-million Baltic Russian community in 2020, through the stories of 3 generations of women in the director’s family.” It was awarded as the Best Long Documentary and having Best Editing (Stefan Stabenow).

I had an email conversation with the producer Guntis Trekteris in April 2023, when the film was finished, I saw the film twice and ended up with these words – not a review but comments, edited email version:

“It is a good film, actually a very good film, well composed and the protagonists are fine with grandma and mother as the ones you engage in. And Raul of course, poor guy… he disappears towards the end, maybe that could have been explained, did they divorce? Maybe he could have been a bit more in the foreground, maybe a foreign audience would like to know, why he ended up in Latvia – USSR. Anyway, there is a rhythm, there are the returning new year celebrations, Raul’s difficulty to get the table into the room where they are to eat, Irina visiting Nina again and again, the teeth that disappear, the May 9 celebrations etc. There is a lot of fine and warm scenes.

International festivals – I am sure you try but it is difficult I guess as no-one wants anything connected to Russia as things stand. Has that changed I ask now – beginning of 2024?

So this was a good experience – watching the film twice, as I have done in many cases when in doubt: I guess at the first screening, I was irritated of the mother’s constant crying and frustration, some times hysterical, but I think Stanislavs has done a fine job to make the audience understand why.” 

Greetings to you and the director