Dostoevsky's Travels

In 1862, Fyodor Dostoevsky left Russia to travel through western Europe. One-hundred and twenty-nine years later, his great-grandson, a tram driver named Dimitri, decides to reconstruct the journey and travels from St. Petersburg to Berlin and London where he lectures on his great-grandfather. When Pawel Pawlikowski became aware of Dimitri’s plans, he decided to accompany the eminent author’s last descendant with his camera. The Polish director blends real events with fictional elements, and through the figure of the great-grandson, who (quite cynically) exploits his familial pedigree for financial purposes, ruminates on the Soviet Union’s transition toward capitalism.