A Film a Week - Yugo Goes to America / Yugo ide u Ameriku

 previously published on Cineuropa

Most people in the countries of the former Yugoslavia have a memory of, or a story to tell about, the Yugo car: they drove one, or rode as passengers in those belonging to their parents, uncles or neighbours; they learned to drive in one; they had their first road trip or their first kiss in one. It was never a good or a reliable motor, but it was “theirs”. And the fact that it was somewhat successfully sold in the United States in the late 1980s and early 1990s further reinforced the myth of the greatness of Yugoslavia, despite its rapid and volatile collapse.

This serves as the starting point for Serbian writer-turned-filmmaker Filip Grujić to explore collective memories and to create some new ones while fulfilling his dream of travelling across the USA. Co-helmed with director of photography Aleksa Borković, Yugo Goes to America world-premiered at CPH:DOX, and it enjoyed its first national screening as the opening movie of the 19th edition of Beldocs.

Grujić could not remember his own personal story about his parents’ red Yugo, the car he was brought home in from the maternity ward. They divorced and sold the car a couple of years later, so Filip never owned or drove one. So, his idea was simple: to create his own Yugo-related memories while travelling across the United States in an imported red model. However, bureaucracy got in the way, so Filip, Aleksa and the sound guy (also Filip’s childhood friend), Aki, had to purchase one of the rare remaining examples there. Now in a black model, and accompanied by the US production crew consisting of Russ and Carlos, they set off on a journey from New York to Los Angeles with the intention of exploring the story of the Yugo’s short-lived success, followed by its failure, in America.

During their road trip, they set up interviews with the director and vice-president of the Yugo America company, which imported and sold the cars, Malcom Bricklin and Tony Ciminera; Czechoslovak immigrant Miro Kefurt, who was the first man to import it privately; and Jason Vuić, the author of the book The Yugo: The Rise and Fall of the Worst Car in History. However, the fact that their vehicle breaks down constantly, like a proper Yugo, also leads them to enthusiasts like Ohio-based mechanic, racer and comedian (of sorts) Nick Bygrave, and a couple of Iowa-based Bosnian-US nationals called Alen and Hasan.

Grujić and Borković have also collected stories about the USA, migration and the little oddities of life in some almost mythical places and environments, such as the large Serbian community in Chicago; Nashville; Dallas, where a new sound girl coveting the American Dream, Ivana, joined them; Las Vegas; on desert roads; and Los Angeles, where their journey ended. With Grujić providing his own lyrical and reflexive voice-over narration, the crew members often swapped roles and stepped in front of the camera themselves. This adventure only took its final shape through the editing, handled by Kristina Todorović, while the music composed by Boško Mijušković brought in older and newer songs by various artists from the former Yugoslavia in order to set the emotional tone of the film.

In the end, Yugo Goes to America is not a movie about a car, a company history or even the memories of Yugoslavia that collapsed in a bloody civil war. It is about adventure, dreams, friendship, the melting pot that is the USA and the peculiarities of different cultures coming together in the big, wide world. It is therefore about life itself.

A Film a Week - America

 previously published on Asian Movie Pulse

There is hardly more exploited concept in literature and cinema as it is a love triangle, and there are few filmmakers that could pull it in a new and fresh way. The Israeli filmmaker Ofir Raul Graizer has a difficult task to stir the water in his unique way with his sophomore feature “America” that has premiered in the official Crystal Globe competition at Karlovy Vary. Some sort of a festival tour might be expected judging by the tone of film, its execution and Graizer’s own reputation: his debut “The Cakemaker” (2017) that also premiered at KVIFF went to become the Israeli official entry for 2018 Oscar and a minor arthouse hit.

The title, which later proves to be quite misleading, comes the place where our protagonist Ilay Cross (Michael Moshonov) resides and works as a swimming coach. One day, he receives a phone call from his father’s attorney that informs him that the father has passed away and that Ilai inherited the house. Once he gets back to Israel, we learn that his actual name is Eli Greenberg, that his father was a national hero and a local sheriff, that his mother is long gone and that Eli had a complicated relationship with his family.

In the meanwhile, Eli reconnects with his childhood friend and swimming rival Yotam (Ofri Biterman) who now owns a florist shop and is engaged with Iris (Oshrat Ingadashet). For the old times’ sake, Eli and Yotam go swimming in the creek where they played when they were kids, but, while Eli takes a nap in the sun, Yotam slips and falls to end up in a vegetative state. Ten months later, Eli is still in Israel, refurbishing his house in order to sell it well. Iris’ shop is deeply in debt, so she accepts Eli’s offer to help him with the garden and while doing so, the two get closer and fall in love. When Yotam suddenly wakes up from coma, the relationship dynamics are about to be re-evaluated again…

While the plot description and the film’s structure in four chapters (the last of them serves actually as an epilogue) seem a bit Almodóvar-esque, “America” is actually a film that plays by its own set of rules. Each character we encounter is quite complex and life-like, which is especially true for our central trio whose traits, past and trauma we get to learn slowly through the drips of information Graizer feeds us through his script. Also, each of the central three chapters is centred around one of the relationships in the completely drawn triangle: Eli’s and Yotam’s platonic bro-mance, Eli’s and Iris’ passionate affair coming out of desperation, and Iris’ and Yotam’s rekindled love through which they both survive.

Graizer’s directing style is toned-down and discreet, but also quite tactile. He demonstrated it also in “The Cakemaker”, which also had a queer angle and was more focused on relationship building through enjoying and preparing food. In “America”, Graizer focuses more on the tactile aspect of the intrapersonal dynamics in relationships that always have some physical component, whether they are sexual by nature or not. The only thing that breaks that unity is Dominique Charpentier’s score that is a bit too revealing.

Shot in the colours of the eternal warm season in Israel, suggestively edited and equipped with fitting production- and costume design, “America” is very much competent piece of work. The amount of storytelling control achieved through the fine-tuning process by Graizer actually makes “America” resemble an American film, whether it be a higher profile indie or a smaller studio production.

Graizer’s detailed and layered writing also allows the standout performances in the acting department. Michael Moshonov has the most complex, but also the most thankful task as Eli, a decent man of high ethical standards, but also of strong emotions and deeply hidden traumas covered with a layer of mystery. As Iris, Oshrat Ingadashet gets to play the most emotional and vulnerable part, while Ofri Bitterman has to show the multitude of moods, from joviality to helplessness to determination.

“America” is definitely very well made and very accessible film that could do very well with different audiences. Watching it gives the sense of reading a fine novel. Maybe Graizer just has to follow the footsteps of the protagonist he created and takes a jump across the pond where he could be a reliable “money player”.