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In a seriously demanding role, Bass spends much of the film in a state of mental anguish, often nakedly so. Amat's odyssey feels very messy, spiralling into a Lynchian fever dream, so his more grounded moments have a bracing authenticity. As the more reactive Amir, Akar brings a strong emotionality as a man grappling with setbacks in his efforts to make things better. Both actors have superb presence on-screen. The connection between them is strongly felt, even as events begin to feel somewhat melodramatic.

Larger political and environmental issues swirl through the narrative, as Amaru works for a foundation dedicated to sustaining the area's "water factory", a dense forest in the hills. He thinks a recent fire was started by foreigners who have no regard for local plant and animal life. These important ideas add surprising textures to the film. The trickier thing is for the audience to piece the dream-within-dream storyline together in a way that connects with our experience.

themes, language, violence, sexuality

7.Nov.22

The actors quietly lean into their characters' idiosyncrasies. Izdryk has terrific presence as the amusingly sardonic Felix, often seeming to be on some sort of secret mission. He's also usually drunk, tormented by his military past. His connection with Baliuk's teen Tima has a loose authenticity that skilfully sidesteps the standard cinematic cliches. Scenes between Baliuk and Semenko also have an unusual awkward honesty to them that's knowing and engaging. And Karpenko and Veretelnyk-Stephanova bring very different kind of maternal influences to their scenes.

While this film was shot before the current war in Ukraine, its observational approach becomes sometimes startlingly resonant, using warm humour to gently explore the generational impact of war and conflict. This is depicted almost obliquely in scenes captured from inventive perspectives, snapping into focus in heart-stopping ways, such as when, after running off to serve in the military himself, Tima (now Gladky) returns to find his home has profoundly changed. Tsilyk weaves these elements together with a sure hand, finding powerful underlying themes without overstating anything.

themes, language, violence

15.Aug.22

While Julia is too impulsively hot-headed to be likeable, Ledru finds enough internal grit to make her compelling to watch. We can see that she thinks deeply about everything, even though her decision-making skills are seriously appalling. Ledru also brings out her fiery soul in some powerfully intense moments. Other characters are similarly underwritten, but benefit from high-energy actors, with Buresi standing out as the entrapped Ophelie, whose out-of-control cheeky son Kulian (Schroeder) only calms down when he's around Julia.

Because most of the cast is non-professional, including Ledru, the biker community has an earthy, electrically charged feel to it. And the premise is bursting with possibilities and ideas. So it's odd that the film's plot feels somewhat forced as it pits a woman against this man's world, complete with a climactic Fast & Furious-style heist set-piece. Still, the way Quivoron gets into this subculture is impressive, and the film is shot and edited in a way that makes us hold on for dear life.

themes, language, violence

28.Sep.22