In competition for the FIPRESCI Prize.
film synopsis
This bittersweet drama about a father’s devotion to his son unfolds mostly in the former Soviet émigré enclave of Brighton Beach, New York. It marks the third fiction outing by Georgian director Levan Koguashvili and shares the rueful sense of humor and poignant sweetness of his feature debut Blind Dates (PSIFF 2014). It follows Kakhi, a former Olympic wrestling champ from Tbilisi, who goes to New York to help his adult son, Soso, get his life back on track. Kakhi is a kind, even-tempered, non-judgmental problem solver, but the hapless Soso isn’t exactly a chip off the old block. As Kakhi tries to earn money to help his son, he becomes involved in some cockamamie schemes hatched by other inhabitants of the shabby hostel on 4th St., where Russian is the lingua franca. The tender screenplay by Boris Frumin captures characters living in the new world in much the same fashion as they did in the old.