Brief
Skip to main content Skip to navigation Close dialogue 1 / 1 Next image Previous image Toggle caption Print subscriptions Search jobs Sign in Eur Europe edition UK edition US edition Australia edition International edition The Guardian - Back to home The Guardian News Opinion Sport Culture Lifestyle Show more Hide expanded menu News View all News World news UK news Climate crisis Ukraine Environment Science Global development Football Tech Business Obituaries Opinion View all Opinion The Guardian view Columnists Cartoons Opinion videos Letters Sport View all Sport Football Cricket Rugby union Tennis Cycling F1 Golf US sports Culture View all Culture Books Music TV & radio Art & design Film Games Classical Stage Lifestyle View all Lifestyle Fashion Food Recipes Love & sex Health & fitness Home & garden Women Men Family Travel Money Search input google-search Search Support us Print subscriptions Search jobs Holidays Digital Archive Guardian Licensing Live events About Us The Guardian app Video Podcasts Pictures Newsletters Today's paper Inside the Guardian Guardian Weekly Crosswords Wordiply Corrections Tips Search input google-search Search Search jobs Holidays Digital Archive Guardian Licensing Live events About Us World Europe US news Americas Asia Australia Middle East Africa Inequality Global development Unwavering pride … Samvel and Avo in The Black Garden. Photograph: True Story View image in fullscreen Unwavering pride … Samvel and Avo in The Black Garden. Photograph: True Story Film Review The Black Garden review – haunting study of growing up in war-torn Nagorno-Karabakh Alexis Pazoumian’s documentary follows Samvel and Avo, two preteen boys whose lives will be unavoidably scarred by brutal conflict Phuong Le Mon 31 Aug 2026 08.00 CEST Last modified on Mon 31 Aug 2026 08.02 CEST Share Prefer the Guardian on Google A fter the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, a decades-long territorial dispute exploded in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh, as its largely Armenian population fought against countless military campaigns from the Azerbaijani army. Shot over the course of three eventful years, which culminated in the surrender of Nagorno-Karabakh’s separatist government in 2023 , Alexis Pazoumian’s haunting documentary harnesses the collective turmoil that dominated generations of Armenians. From the elderly to the very young, the community are united by an unwavering sense of pride, one that carries them through never-ending bloodshed and displacement. The film opens with the harrowing sight of a bombed-out school in the small village of Talish, where childlike innocence contrasts with wartime trauma. Samvel and Avo, two preteen boys, roam through the wreckage and scavenge for remains of past normalcy, like the scattered notebooks left behind by their former classmates. The threat of the enemy, however, is drilled into every aspect of their daily life. At school, they learn how to assemble guns, and at family gatherings, they join in songs that speak of heroic valour. That the children here – boys and girls – will grow up to become soldiers is a foregone conclusion. Pazoumian’s film, however, steers clear of nationalist ideologies to lay bare the human cost of conflict. In one early scene, we see twentysomething Armenian recruit Erik performing energetic somersaults in his military uniform. Later on, the once-beaming young man returns from the frontline a shadow of his former self, having lost a leg. Still, Erik regains his optimism as he undergoes physical therapy and rehabilitation; his resilience, too, is a kind of cultural inheritance. Though the film could have been enriched by more detailed sociopolitical context, the emotional weight of such scenes makes it a profound work of remembrance. The Black Garden is on True Story from 4 September. Explore more on these topics Film Documentary films Armenia Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh Europe reviews Share Reuse this content Most viewed Most viewed World Europe US news Americas Asia Australia Middle East Africa Inequality Global development News Opinion Sport Culture Lifestyle Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning Sign up for our email About us Help Complaints & corrections Contact us Tip us off SecureDrop Privacy policy Cookie policy Tax strategy Terms & conditions All topics All writers Newsletters Digital newspaper archive Bluesky Facebook Instagram LinkedIn Threads TikTok YouTube Advertise with us Search UK jobs Tips Accessibility settings Work with us Back to top © 2026 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. (dcr)
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