Despite the longer-than-normal gap between its premiere and U.S. release, Viktoria hasn’t been wanting for good buzz. Advance praise for the Bulgarian drama has been high since 2014’s Sundance, during which time writer-director Maya Vitkova was commended for her daring mixture of tones, approaches, ideas, and scales, through these creating what is perhaps one of the definitive films about the Soviet Union’s destruction.
And now it’s coming to the U.S. in a limited release — which, of course, means there is a domestic trailer to gaze over. Fear not: this seems to give away nothing of the plot or incidents, instead allowing one to enjoy some of Vitkova’s much-praised imagery. If it’s indicative of the final result, Viktoria might prove an out-of-left-field stunner.
See the preview below:
Synopsis:
Maya Vitkova’s stunning debut feature Viktoria, which had its World Premiere at the Sundance Film Festival last year, follows three generations of women in the final years of the People’s Republic of Bulgaria and the early years of the transition to democracy. The film focuses on reluctant mother Boryana and her daughter, Viktoria, who in one of the film’s surreal, magical touches is born without an umbilical cord. Though unwanted by her mother, Viktoria is named the country’s Baby of the Decade, and is showered with gifts and attention until the disintegration of the East Bloc. Despite throwing their worlds off balance, the resulting political changes also allow for the possibility of reconciliation. Vitkova wrote, produced and directed Viktoria, making it both personal and universal, and demonstrating a precocious command of all elements of the filmmaking process. Especially impressive is the film’s visual sensibility and its command of a range of shifting tones, from absurdist humor to political allegory to deeply moving familial drama.
Viktoria will begin its theatrical release on April 29.