This backpackers’ adventure is a loose adaptation of Tim Bissell’s Expensive Trips Nowhere, a series of stories about rich Westerners travelling in poor, beautiful parts of the world. In this case, Alex (Gael García Bernal) and Nica (Hani Furstenberg) have decided to go trekking in the Caucasus a few months before their wedding, led by local guide Dato (Bidzina Gujabidze). They walk for hours, sometimes talking or singing, but usually surrounded by the intoxicating silence of the rugged mountains. An unexpected event sorely tests their relationship. Julia Loktev’s second feature film deals with relationships disrupted by misunderstandings, but is alsoa masterful example of repetition and duration in cinema. Gujabidze, who makes his debut in this film, works as a professional mountaineer, enabling him to give an authentic performance, while Bernal and Furstenberg manage to create an alienating chemistry. The title is a playful reference to the popular publisher of travel guides.
Film details
Countries of production
Germany, USA
Year
2011
Festival edition
IFFR 2012
Length
113'
Medium/Format
35mm
Language
English
Premiere status
None
Director
Julia Loktev
Producer
Jay Van Hoy, Helge Albers, Lars Knudsen, Marie Therese Guirgis