2015, Renārs Vimba, Drama
LENGTH: 105 min
COUNTRY: Latvia
YEAR: 2015
GENRE: Drama
LANGUAGE: Latvian w/English subtitles
FORMATS: DCP, Blu-ray & DVD
DIRECTOR: Renārs Vimba
CAST: Elīna Vaska, Andžejs Jānis Lilientāls, Edgars Samītis, Zane Jančevska, Ruta Birgere, Rēzija Kalniņa
CREW: SCREENWRITER: Renārs Vimba; CINEMATAGRAPHER: Arnar Thorisson; EDITOR: Georgios Mavropsaridis; MUSIC: Ēriks Ešenvalds; PRODUCER: Aija Bērziņa & Alise Ģelze
Following the death of their father and emigration of their mother to England to find work, 17-year-old Raya (Vaska) and her younger brother, Robis (Andzejs Janis Lilientals), are forced to share a squalid rural cottage with their paternal grandmother (Ruta Birgere), whom they despise. When Raya returns from school one day to find their grandmother dead, they uneasily bury her in the garden to avoid the local social worker who has been snooping about and go about their lives as if nothing has happened. When a high school English competition promising a trip to London for the finalists provides hope for Raya to escape her desperate situation – maybe even help them find her mother – she ultimately makes a series of decisions that bring her to an unenviable crossroad.
The Hollywood Reporter
By Stephen Dalton
“Talented young leads elevate this bittersweet Baltic tale of adolescent angst.”
Variety
By Alissa Simon
“Harsh circumstances force a resourceful and determined Latvian lass to mature beyond her years in “Mellow Mud,” a compelling, bittersweet coming-of-ager from first-time feature helmer-writer Renars Vimba. This evocatively shot realist tale benefits from a spare yet credible script and a knockout performance from big-screen debutant Elina Vaska, who conveys her character’s feelings of anger, abandonment, responsibility and first love with conviction and authenticity. “
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