A story about a simple school literature teacher, Fedorov, who thought his life couldn't become more boring and pointless until he met a strange girl, who stormed into his very ordinary day, accused him of bringing her girl-friend to suicide and turned his life completely.
Acting
Serebryakov's magnificent flop sweat — every sigh is a small death.
Writing
Dialogue so awkward you'll need to pause and recover.
Direction
Puskepalis squeezes cosmic dread into a school hallway.

Director
Sergey Puskepalis
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Puskepalis and Serebryakov had worked together multiple times, developing a shorthand for male Russian desperation.
The title 'Clinch' refers to both boxing and desperation — the characters locked together, unable to separate, damaging each other.