Sanatorium – Film Review
by Frank L.

Directed by Gar O’Rourke

Gar O’Rourke visited Ukraine in 2018, and through a Ukrainian friend, he became aware of the Kuylanik sanatorium in Odessa. It is an edifice which came into existence in the seventies when Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union, and its brutalist architecture is a monument to that time. It provides a vast array of treatments and therapies for those who come to stay for a cure or respite from whatever their problem is.

Being situated on the shores of the Black Sea, many of its clients believe in the restorative powers of its therapeutic mud and brine. But its heyday is past, and the number of visitors who come to stay is now far fewer. It appears that in the past, the weekly turnover was 300 guests, but now it is lucky if it reaches 30. O’Rourke stayed for a while and was fascinated by the institution, the staff and its clients. He returned in 202l and stayed in Kuyalnik for a week to savour the various treatments it had to offer. Putin’s war had not then begun. By the end of his week’s stay, he had fallen in love with the place. In an interview in “Cinemawithoutborders”, he has stated “…there was something almost intangible happening, a kind of magnetic draw that was bringing people there to rest and take stock of their lives”.

O’Rourke returned by which time Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had begun. However, Kuyalnik continued at its own steady pace. O’Rourke shows the range of individuals who come to Kuyalnik for its generous ambience. He shows the initial interview between an individual and one of their receptionists when their particular issue is aired. Their reasons to be there are as diverse as the individuals. They include a young woman who has fertility issues, a young man who is rehabilitating after being injured in the war, a widow of a certain age whose husband has been killed in the war and a mother and her 40-year-old son, who she wishes were married.  Interestingly, they appear to be sharing a bedroom. There is a collection of men and women, mostly in the second half of their lives, who have come to Kuyalnik for its calm and peace, which stands in contrast to the war, the rumbles of which can be heard, from time to time, in the background. There is also some tell-tale smoke which lingers on the horizon, but the war’s presence can be more intrusive, as when an air raid warning rings out and everyone has to descend into a shelter for safety.

O’Rourke captures a very human need to escape from everyday woes to seek a resolution or alleviation of them.  There is humour and sadness as the clients seek to find some kind of restoration of the body and perhaps even the soul in this iconic building from a bygone time. O’Rourke has described the building, in the above-mentioned interview, as “an incredible architectural gem”.

Out of these most unlikely elements, O’Rourke has himself created a cinematic delight which has now been selected as Ireland’s Official Entry for Best International Film at the 2026 Oscars. It is an unlikely but engaging insight into how the human spirit needs steadiness and calm at all times, but particularly in a time of war. It is gentle and inspiring. It is a film Ireland can be proud of.