Eastern Plays
An accomplished debut feature from Bulgaria’s Kamen Kalev, ”Eastern Plays” begins as if it were just another slice of gritty realism from eastern Europe but evolves into a sensitively observed portrait of a young man struggling to fi nd himself after years as a drug addict. (…)
”Eastern Plays” is not just a story of recovery but delves into the unpleasant world of neo-Nazism and racist violence in Sofia.
– MIKE GOODRIDGE, SCREEN DAILY
The quiet despair of directionless souls could be a dreary subject in the hands of a lesser novice, but Kamen Kalev’s ”Eastern Plays” is an honest, skillful rumination on the search for inner and outer connections. (…)
The bleak apartment blocs on the outskirts of Sofia, Bulgaria, are home to Georgi (Ovanes Torosian), a troubled teen dabbling in skinhead culture. Half-heartedly drawn to a violent racist clique by Fish (Chavdar Sokolov), Georgi is borderline disaffected, joining in when Drega (Alexander ”The Indian” Radanov) leads a foreigner-bashing posse in an attack on a visiting Turkish family.
– JAY WEISSBERG, VARIETY
Duration: 89 min
Dialogue: Turkey, Bulgarian
Subtitles: English
