To The Lake

A family escape with no easy company

An epidemic is overwhelming Moscow. Sergey tries to get his family to a remote refuge by a lake, bringing his partner Anna, his ex-wife Irina, children and other survivors into an uncomfortable travelling party. The distance is only one problem. Old resentments do not disappear because everyone now faces the same danger.

Kirill Käro plays Sergey, with Viktoriya Isakova as Anna and Maryana Spivak as Irina. The appeal is the mixture of domestic pressure and practical survival: deciding where to go is difficult enough without disagreeing about whose priorities should come first.

I watched the first season with subtitles and enjoyed it. The cold setting and the family tensions give a familiar outbreak story enough of its own character to make it interesting. It is a qualified recommendation rather than an essential watch, but if Russian-language survival drama appeals, I would encourage you to try it.

My full season-one review covers what worked for me and why I would keep the subtitles on. Day 5 is another smaller-scale survival story with a strong premise; Dogs of Berlin is a stronger recommendation for anyone exploring television beyond English-language shows.