Ete bolory

Natalya Belyauskene is best known for her shorts and TV serials – an appropriate choice for a director, perhaps, considering that the plot consists of small episodes strung together by the genre of a road movie. Moreover, the perspective of a director who trained and worked in Russia is appropriate, as the film follows Sasha from Samara on her journey to Yerevan. Sasha has come to find her father’s comrade-in-arms Gurgen, so he can take her to her father’s grave where she wishes to plant a birch tree. Some historical background helps us understand the sides in what seems to be a continuing war: twenty years ago, Sasha’s father fought on the side of the Armenian army during the war over Nagorno-Karabagh (1988-94). Sasha’s Armenian mother came from Karabagh and was killed during the Sumgait pogrom. However, this indispensable background is almost indecipherable. Sasha hits the road with Gurgen, who takes her to his fellow soldier Hoso before they collect Dero – all in an attempt to find the grave, it seems, but actually to prolong the journey and avoid the truth: namely, that Sasha’s father is buried on enemy land.

The road movie is indeed an appropriate genre for a film that essentially seeks a way of telling the truth – about the past, about guilt, about mistakes. Amidst all this the film portrays a wealth of Armenian rituals, from funny to serious, which suggest a somewhat touristy portrayal of the country. BiB