The Ascent by Larisa Shepitko

Once again due to the delights of food poisoning I missed the lecture and the screening, now trying to watch The Ascent online with subtitles was proving difficult, so my own observations of the film based on what I have read will have to suffice. The obvious connection I spotted was the biblical parallel which is shown when Rybak betrays Sotnikov and then tries to hang himself, because of the overwhelming guilt he feels at betraying his comrade, this to me mirrors the story of the last supper in The Gospel of Matthew, in which Jesus is betrayed by Judas of Iscariot who then commits suicide by hanging himself. This I thought was done to show the frailty of comradeship and loyalty, and the natural human instinct to do whatever is necessary to save ones self, this also reminded me of the issues brought up in Space Odyssey, which also looks at the things (war and violence) we resort to in order to preserve our own existence. I also thought the theme of betrayal, which I liked, was very unique in a World War two set film, as most portray an image of unfaltering loyalty between comrades.
A differing view on the biblical reference made in the film is that of Dave Kehr who states that it works on many deeper levels, but there is the presence of a redemption through suffering theme. This I do agree with, but because of the betrayal of a comrade is so out of place in a film like this I believe that this is the dominant reference, because it is almost like Shepitko wants it to deliberately stand out.