Fleeing Shadows - Cast

Fleeing Shadows (2024)
Short | Short, Action

Fleeing Shadows (2024)

Short | Short, Action

Fleeing Shadows opens with a quiet monologue by Marat, a middle-aged immigrant from Qazaqland living in Canada. Alone at his computer, he watches news footage of yet another wave of nationwide protests in his homeland- uprisings against ...See moreFleeing Shadows opens with a quiet monologue by Marat, a middle-aged immigrant from Qazaqland living in Canada. Alone at his computer, he watches news footage of yet another wave of nationwide protests in his homeland- uprisings against corruption and injustice that, despite their scale, are once again brutally suppressed. His voice carries both distance and unresolved grief for a country he was forced to leave behind. After the title card, the film cuts to Max, another middle-aged man, in a police station in Qazaqland. Furious and desperate, he demands answers from an investigator about the sudden disappearance of his close friend. Instead of help, Max is met with intimidation and thinly veiled threats. Refusing to be silenced, he storms out, warning the investigator that accountability will come. Once Max is gone, the investigator contacts higher authorities and receives approval to summon-and eliminate-him the following day. Outside the station, Max receives a call from a fellow activist who delivers devastating news: his lawyer and several allies have vanished without a trace. Realizing the danger he's in, she urges him to flee the country immediately. With no other option, Max escapes the city, travels by bus to Manas International Airport in a neighboring country, and eventually makes his way to Canada. In Montreal, Max reunites with Marat, who has been living there for years and offers him shelter. Through Marat's narration, we learn of their shared past and diverging paths. Marat has resigned himself to a life of exhausting manual labor, while Max struggles to adapt. Desperate for fast money, Max is drawn into the criminal underworld and begins distributing drugs after joining a local gang. Tensions rise between the two men. One morning, after returning from a night shift, Marat explodes when he discovers that Max has been using his car without permission and falling behind on rent. Max tries to reassure him, paying what he owes and insisting that his last drug deal is behind him-that he's ready to walk away and start over. Marat doubts the gang will let him go so easily and urges Max to leave the province, or even Canada altogether. Moments later, a masked stranger knocks on their apartment door, posing as a municipal pest control worker. An unsuspecting Marat lets him in and is immediately attacked. As Marat screams for help, Max intervenes and shoots the intruder dead. Believing Montreal to be as corrupt as the world they fled, the men decide not to contact the police. Instead, they dispose of the body and make plans to escape to Mexico, where Marat has a trusted friend. Before leaving, Marat calls his Québécois landlord, Pierre, to explain their sudden departure. Concerned and confused, Pierre presses for answers, but Marat ends the call without revealing the truth. Crossing into Upstate New York, Marat and Max lie to a border officer, claiming they are only taking a day trip-avoiding a passport scan that could expose them. As they drive south through the United States, a mysterious and intimidating man visits Pierre's home, asking questions about Marat and Max. Pierre can offer nothing; Marat had refused to explain what was happening. In Tamaulipas, Mexico, Marat and Max stop along a wooded road. Suddenly, armed men arrive in a pickup truck-implied to be cartel members. The two are assaulted, interrogated, and robbed. Certain they are about to be killed, Marat prepares for the end. Instead, they are unexpectedly spared and allowed to leave. In Marat's final monologue, we learn of their ultimate fates: after reaching Mexico City, Max chooses to return to Qazaqland, confronting the dangers he once fled. Marat remains in Mexico under the protection of his friend, living in exile once more-hoping that one day, when the shadows finally recede, he can return to Canada. Written by Erjan Leroy Nurhassen See less

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Erjan Leroy Nurhassen Marat Marat See fewer	The Last Ride (2025)

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