Russian Sci-Fi Horror-Thriller Sputnik Picked Up By IFC Midnight

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Look, I know people come here to escape the horrible realities of real-life into the horrible fictional realities of horror movies, but unfortunately sometimes it's hard to talk about film news without referencing other stuff going around the world as well. Covid-19 has once again reared its ugly head to cancel yet another gathering, in this case the Tribeca Film Festival (following the wake of other cancelled events like GDC and E3), where the Russian Cold War-set sci-fi horror-thriller (that's a lotta hyphens) was supposed to premiere. 

Luckily the film, the directorial debut of Egor Abramenko, has just gotten its North American rights secured by none other than IFC Midnight, and will be releasing the film on August 23rd (assuming theaters will still exist then). Sony, meanwhile, was supposed to release the film theatrically in Russia on April 16th, but obviously those plans have been scrapped and it's now going to be released digitally in that territory on April 23rd.

According to Deadline, the plot of SPUTNIK

takes place at the height of the Cold War when a Soviet spacecraft crash lands after a mission gone awry, leaving the commander as its only survivor. After a renowned Russian psychologist is brought in to evaluate the commander’s mental state, it becomes clear that something dangerous may have come back to Earth with him.

Now, I'm a huge fan of horror films involving space and aliens (ALIEN and THE THING being some of the best horror movies ever, with even EVENT HORIZON holding a special place in my heart), as well as a huge fan of Russian cinema in general (in fact, Andrei Tarkovsky's SOLARIS is also one of the best space thrillers ever made!) So I have high hopes for this one!