Siberia review

Why you can trust 12DOVE Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

Amsterdam-based friends Hugo (Hugo Metsers) and Goof (Roeland Fernhout) spend life getting into the knickers of vulnerable female backpackers, then nicking their dosh. But the testosterone-charged charmers are shocked when one `victim' has a sharper bite than they're used to.

Director Robert Jan Westdijk tries to inject this initially intriguing sex-thriller with adrenalin-fuelled cool, but his desperate attempts to do so, through some fast-cutting visual flashiness and a trance soundtrack, ultimately fail. Even worse, Westdijk is trapped by liking his male leads too much, and in trying for a `feelgood' ending, he slips from portraying, to justifying, a pair of women-haters.

The astute turns and the emotional see-sawing of this ill-founded friendship provide some warmth and humour, but it isn't enough to prevent Siberia from being too harsh and misogynistic to merit praise.

The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine.