Gikor: A heavy, essential watch that sticks with you

Is this for you?

Look, if you are looking for a fun time or something to zone out to on a Friday night, keep scrolling. Gikor is the kind of movie that makes your chest feel tight. It is essential viewing if you care about classic cinema, but it’s going to leave you feeling pretty wrecked. If you have no patience for slow, deliberate storytelling, you will probably find it frustrating.

It’s based on the Hovhannes Tumanyan story. You probably know the beat—the poor country boy sent to the city to 'make something of himself' only to be treated like dirt by a merchant who has completely forgotten what it means to be human.

The weight of it

The cinematography here is stark. Everything feels dusty and tired, matching the boy's internal state perfectly. There’s a scene where Gikor is just sitting there, looking out a window, and the way the light hits his face? It’s not flashy. It’s just sad.

Sometimes the film moves at a pace that feels like it’s deliberately punishing you. I checked my watch twice, but then I realized the silence is the point. You have to sit in that discomfort.

• The merchant's house feels like a prison, even when the doors are open.
• The contrast between the village memories and the city reality is jarring.
• The actor playing Gikor has eyes that seem to see right through the camera lens.

It reminded me a bit of the suffocating atmosphere you get in The Caretaker's Daughter, though obviously a completely different type of story. There is this same feeling of being trapped by social standing and circumstances you can't control.

Small observations

Did anyone else notice the sound mixing in the market scenes? It’s chaotic and loud, and it makes the quiet moments in the merchant's study feel even more isolated. The transition between these spaces is handled really well, almost aggressively so.

The merchant character is a total monster. But he isn't a cartoonish villain. He’s just a man who has traded his soul for coins. That’s somehow worse.

I found myself getting angry at the screen. Not at the movie, but at the situation. That is a sign it’s doing its job, I guess. It’s a gut punch. You’ll be thinking about that final shot for a while. I know I am.