Lithuanian cinema is gaining international renown. Thanks to the award received in Venice, writer and director Laurynas Bareiša has a special role in the emergence of the new generation. In an interview, the author has expressed two ideas that are seemingly mutually exclusive: cinema is mass art, not elite art; we had better forget that cinema is entertainment. The author has applied this two-sentence credo also in his new film.

Paulius’s younger brother was kidnapped, raped and murdered four years ago. But Paulius wishes to trace his dead brother’s journey in the small town where this took place. He invites Indre, his brother’s girlfriend, to come along, and a peculiar detective story unrolls in front of the audience.

The simplicity of this film is excitingly captivating, although this is not entertainment, as the author throws a question at the viewers: was this pilgrimage necessary?

Mihkel Möölman