It’s 1992 and people in the Georgian capital of Tiblisi have to fight while they wait in line to buy bread to feed their families. It’s been several months after a coup d'état overthrew the country’s first democratic president and the nation is entering a civil war that would go on for three more years, but there are bigger problems in the lives of Eka (Lika Babluani) and Natia (Mariam Bokeria), two best friends who are dealing with issues like family and boy trouble. If that sounds slightly patronizing, it shouldn’t, because the real magic happening in “In Bloom” is precisely that it allows its heroines to thrive as “regular” teenagers while the world around them seems to fall apart.
Directed by Simon Groß and Nana Ekvtimishvili (who also wrote the screenplay), the film is a memorable entry into the canon of “coming-of-age” films, especially because it takes place in a setting people in America still remain somewhat unfamiliar with. Watching the girls walk to school, spend time at home or even have dinner (“beans again?” asks Natia) provides us with fascinating insight into Georgian culture. We see for example how, desperate to leave her insane family house, Natia chooses to become engaged to a man (Zurab Gogaladze) she barely even likes, after the guy (Data Zakareishvili) she truly loves leaves town.
The filmmakers take this and other episodes of the girls’ lives to paint a landscape of what it was like to grow up amidst an environment filled with political uncertainty. That Eka and Natia, often seem to ignore the larger problems going on around them is testament to youths ability to take the world in completely fresh and without the attachments of adult obligations. The two lead actresses are wonderful to watch and have an onscreen chemistry that makes us believe they’ve known each other for years, but the filmmakers’ camera isn’t ignoring what the girls do, and in the background we see elements that make “In Bloom” a rather interesting political film. Sudden outbursts of violence, pleasurable birthday lunches that seem like the world’s biggest extravagance and a gun given as present to show someone’s love, are but a few of the ways in which we are reminded of the difference in values between countries at peace and those at war.
That “In Bloom” finds beauty, romance and even happiness among characters who don’t know if they’ll be able to procure food for themselves the next morning makes it a worthy trip to the theater.
