Virtual Friday Night Films at the Wende: Leto

Leto (2018) is a black & white rock musical about a summer in the 1980s Leningrad music scene. It centers around Viktor, Mike, and Natalia—Viktor is Viktor Tsoi of the real-life band Kino, and Mike is Mikhail Naumenko of Zoopark. The soundtrack combines their music with the British and American songs they would have listened to illicitly, from the likes of the Talking Heads, Iggy Pop, and T. Rex. More mood piece than a biopic, the movie blurs the lines between fantasy and reality, with musical interludes, animations, and bursts of color. Theater and film director Kirill Serebrennikov completed the film while under house arrest in Moscow, for what many say were politically motivated charges due to his provocative work. Kino and Zoopark are featured on the Wende’s Soviet Punk Playlist.

Watch on Kanopy, free with a library card. Get immediate access to a LAPL e-card or LA County Library Digital Card.

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Virtual Film Picks are inspired by the in-person Friday Night Films at the Wende program series. This selection is part of a curated list of weekly movie suggestions that can be watched at home, in conjunction with #WendeOnline.