So this is a documentary that is full of imagery of naked female bodies, yet none of it is sexually titillating in the least. The intent seems to be to show that women’s bodies are just bodies, in all shapes, sizes and of all ages. The smoke sauna is apparently a part of the culture of Estonia and this film shows a group of women enjoying the experience in each other’s company while exchanging personal stories. There are no names and no other narration. The images, both of the women and the natural setting of the sauna, are beautiful, the stories are affecting, and that’s enough to make this a wonderful film.

With snow blanketing the ground outside the cottage, a group of women gather inside for the sauna experience. They are all naked, either sitting or lying down, steam fills the small enclosed space as occasionally one of them splashes water onto the hot rocks, and they gently beat each other with bunches of leafy birch branches. In between sessions in the hot room, they run outside to immerse themselves in freezing cold water. Most of all, they tell one another stories from their personal lives and they are all women’s stories. One tells the familiar tale of being pressured by family to find a partner and marry. Another recounts an anecdote about opening up to her family about being a lesbian. The most harrowing story by far comes from a woman who lost her virginity in a sexual assault. The women do their best to support each other and perhaps this unburdening of their souls is as much a cleansing as sweating it out in the sauna and scouring each other’s bodies afterwards.

This must have been filmed over multiple sessions as we can see that it is not always winter outside the sauna and probably with groups of different women. The faces of some of the women are shown on camera but others are hidden, probably at their request. Yet the implication that they are all equal as sisters within the sanctuary of the sauna is obvious. The cinematography is fantastic and director Anna Hints does a wonderful job at dissociating the naked bodies with any sexual connotation. No matter their age, weight or body type, the camera makes them all look beautiful. Similarly the telling of their stories isn’t an attempt to solicit advice or assistance. It’s enough that the other women lend a sympathetic ear, chuckling at the familiarity of the suffering or perhaps rubbing a shoulder in reassurance. For the rest of us, this offers an invaluable perspective of being women.

I do take issue with how little information the documentary offers about the sauna itself. There are scenes of an older woman smoking meat in another room and I had to look it up to understand that the burner is usually in a separate room adjacent to the sauna. I had so many questions about details like how long a session lasts, how are these groups organized and do the men have equivalent rituals. While I’ve always been aware that saunas are popular in that part of the world, it rather blows my mind that pretty much every family does it. Anyway this documentary isn’t really about sauna culture in general, so I have to look elsewhere for answers but it did at least bring it to my attention.

By themselves the stories the women recount aren’t that unique but placing them within the context of the intimate yet non-sexualized sauna elevates them into the realm of art. The nudity of their bodies parallels the baring of their inner thoughts and feelings. The diversity of their body shapes and sizes reminds us that all of the women are unique and different even as they share the same worries and troubles. This is a brilliant film, unique in its conception and executed to perfection.