What if Christ were to return privately to set his two young sons on the right track, which is to do his work in the world? That's what this beautiful Russian film takes as its premise as it assaults the viewer with an overbearing father whose approach to parenting will outrage modern kinder/gentler parenting theory proponents. Although the point of view (from the perspective of the younger boy) encourages us to understand the film in psychological terms, those familiar with Russian Orthodoxy (a version of Catholicism) will recognize that the argument being made here is theological. The parallel between the film's assault on the viewer and the father's assault on his sons suggests a pious attempt on the part of the filmmaker to awaken modern, secular man to what the film argues is truly important.