The Banishment

Year: 2007

Runtime: 158 mins

Language: Russian

Director: Andrey Zvyagintsev

Drama

While vacationing at his childhood home in the countryside, a husband is blindsided when his wife announces she is pregnant—but the baby is not his. The revelation forces the couple to confront betrayal, with the story probing whether they will seek revenge or find a path to forgiveness.

Warning: spoilers below!

Haven’t seen The Banishment yet? This summary contains major spoilers. Bookmark the page, watch the movie, and come back for the full breakdown. If you're ready, scroll on and relive the story!

Timeline & Setting – The Banishment (2007)

Explore the full timeline and setting of The Banishment (2007). Follow every major event in chronological order and see how the environment shapes the story, characters, and dramatic tension.

Location

Alex's house, the countryside (Alex's childhood home), train station, Robert's house, funeral parlour, city

The story moves between a quiet countryside residence and urban spaces, anchored by Alex's house where a wound and a secret initiate the unraveling. The countryside around Alex's childhood home is serene yet claustrophobic, its old friends and neighbors acting as observers to the couple's strain. The train station and Robert's house become pivotal spaces for revelations and confrontations, while the funeral parlour marks the social consequences of private choices. The city reappears at the end, highlighting the tension between private crisis and public life.

🏡 Rural setting 🚂 Train station 🏘️ Village gossip 🏙️ City

Last Updated: October 03, 2025 at 14:28

Main Characters – The Banishment (2007)

Meet the key characters of The Banishment (2007), with detailed profiles, motivations, and roles in the plot. Understand their emotional journeys and what they reveal about the film’s deeper themes.

Vera (Maria Bonnevie)

Vera is emotionally distant and torn between love, pregnancy, and the fear of an unsustainable marriage. Her reliance on appearances masks vulnerability as she grapples with the unborn child and suspicions about paternity. She seeks connection, but the lack of open communication drives drastic choices, including considering abortion. Her arc reveals a complex, tragic resilience within a constrained relationship.

💔 Troubled marriage 🧭 Hidden pregnancy 🕊️ Hidden pain

Alex (Konstantin Lavronenko)

Alex is morally cautious and image-conscious, trying to preserve a fragile family facade while navigating a web of past crimes and present tensions. His reaction to Vera's pregnancy shows a readiness to exert control, even at the cost of trust. He leans on criminal connections to manage personal crises, revealing a complicated blend of loyalty and calculation. His actions propel the tragedy that unfolds.

💼 Calculated 💔 Strained marriage 🥀 Control freak

Last Updated: October 03, 2025 at 14:28

Major Themes – The Banishment (2007)

Explore the central themes of The Banishment (2007), from psychological, social, and emotional dimensions to philosophical messages. Understand what the film is really saying beneath the surface.

Last Updated: October 03, 2025 at 14:28

Coming soon on iOS and Android

The Plot Explained Mobile App

From blockbusters to hidden gems — dive into movie stories anytime, anywhere. Save your favorites, discover plots faster, and never miss a twist again.

Explore Movie Threads

Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.

Slow-burn domestic tragedies like The Banishment

Stories where quiet tension within families erupts into irreversible tragedy.For viewers who appreciated the heavy, somber mood of The Banishment, this list features movies like it that focus on family crises and marital breakdowns. These emotional and touching family dramas share a similar tone and pacing, exploring heartbreaking themes with a devastating, slow-burn approach.

sombertensetragicgrievingdespairmelancholicoppressive

Narrative Summary

Narratives in this thread typically revolve around a seemingly stable family whose foundations are cracked by a single revelation. The story then unfolds slowly, charting the characters' flawed decisions and emotional descent, often culminating in a tragic, irreversible loss that highlights the fragility of familial bonds.

Why These Movies?

Movies are grouped here because they share a core focus on the internal destruction of a family, a slow and deliberate pacing that amplifies dread, and a consistently dark, heavy tone. They prioritize emotional realism and psychological depth over plot twists, resulting in a profoundly melancholic and tense viewing experience.

Movies about rural isolation and psychological torment like The Banishment

Films where vast, quiet landscapes amplify internal turmoil and despair.If you liked the way The Banishment used its countryside setting to create a tense, melancholic atmosphere, explore these similar films. These dramas and thrillers use rural isolation to explore themes of grief, loss, and despair, matching the slow pacing and heavy emotional weight.

quietoppressivetensedespairisolatedmelancholicsomber

Narrative Summary

The narrative pattern often involves characters retreating to a remote location, hoping for peace, only to find their problems magnified by the solitude. The lack of external distraction forces them to confront painful truths, often leading to tragic outcomes driven by isolation-fueled paranoia or despair.

Why These Movies?

These films are connected by their strategic use of setting to create mood. The emptiness and beauty of the natural world serve to underscore the characters' loneliness and internal chaos. This creates a specific vibe of quiet dread, where the environment itself becomes a character contributing to the psychological unraveling.

Unlock the Full Story of The Banishment

Don't stop at just watching — explore The Banishment in full detail. From the complete plot summary and scene-by-scene timeline to character breakdowns, thematic analysis, and a deep dive into the ending — every page helps you truly understand what The Banishment is all about. Plus, discover what's next after the movie.

The Banishment Summary

Read a complete plot summary of The Banishment, including all key story points, character arcs, and turning points. This in-depth recap is ideal for understanding the narrative structure or reviewing what happened in the movie.

The Banishment Timeline

Track the full timeline of The Banishment with every major event arranged chronologically. Perfect for decoding non-linear storytelling, flashbacks, or parallel narratives with a clear scene-by-scene breakdown.

The Banishment Spoiler-Free Summary

Get a quick, spoiler-free overview of The Banishment that covers the main plot points and key details without revealing any major twists or spoilers. Perfect for those who want to know what to expect before diving in.

More About The Banishment

Visit What's After the Movie to explore more about The Banishment: box office results, cast and crew info, production details, post-credit scenes, and external links — all in one place for movie fans and researchers.

Similar Movies to The Banishment

Discover movies like The Banishment that share similar genres, themes, and storytelling elements. Whether you’re drawn to the atmosphere, character arcs, or plot structure, these curated recommendations will help you explore more films you’ll love.