A Trip to Karabakh-Gaseirneba Karabakhsgi (2005)

Directed by: Levan Tutberidze | 105 minutes | drama, war, romance | Actors: Levan Doborjginidze, Misha Meskhi, Nutsa Kuchianidze, Dato Iashvili, Daria Drozdovskaya, Avetik Sanosian, Gagik Melkumov, Artavazd Paloian, Levon Chidilian

People in their twenties also live in the Caucasus: and there, too, those in their twenties are involved in ‘universal’ matters, such as women, cars, music and drugs. Nothing human is therefore alien to the Caucasian, whether he is Georgian, Armenian or Azeri. And yet they have been fighting each other for decades, with at most the occasional rest period in between. Director Tutberidze seems to want to pass on that ‘message’ to the viewer of ‘A Trip to Karabakh’ almost unnoticed.

Against the background of the always explosive situation, a fairly ‘ordinary’ story is told: about a boy who struggles with himself, with the people around him and with the society in which he lives. Very recognizable, also for western people. So the story of ‘A Trip to Karabakh’ is not that special or original. However, the setting in which it takes place does.

Central Asia is not known as a cinema paradise. And that’s a shame, because those who love beautiful landscapes, weathered heads and interesting life stories do not have to look far in this region.

Gio and Gogliko are polar opposites in many ways: Gogliko is a party animal with a smooth chat, always on the lookout for drugs. Gio is a quiet boy, at first sight quite ‘cool’, and the son of an influential policeman in Tbilisi. The latter fact is both an advantage and a disadvantage: he knows how to keep his friends out of trouble, but his father sees him as a good-for-nothing. When Gio starts a relationship with Jana, tensions rise. Not only between Gio and his father, but also between Gio and his friends.

Against this background, Gio and Gogliko are sent to Armenia to get a consignment of drugs. A perilous undertaking, but the carefree Gogliko sees it as a fun outing that gives them the opportunity to listen extensively to Miles Davis in the car.

However, things go wrong: they get lost, end up in the Karabakh war zone and eventually fall into the hands of the Azeris. Things get even more complicated when Gio ends up with the Armenians after a chaotic shooting. There, Gio seems to get a kind of preferential position, as a Georgian ‘brother’, but slowly but surely it becomes clear that he is not really free. This realization hits him especially when he comes into contact with Valera, an artistic stranger who has been staying with the Armenians for years.

The situation escalates when a group of Russian journalists visit the Armenian fighters. A complex combination of factors makes Gio feel increasingly compelled to take action: to reveal the truth about the warring factions, but even more so to come to terms with himself. He must rescue himself, Gogliko and (indirectly) his relationship with Jana from the hopeless situation they have found themselves in.

A well-known but complicated story, or rather a combination of stories in which Gio is always the main character. At an individual, relational and social level, things happen that in turn influence each other. Moreover, the story is deliberately made more chaotic by unexpected jumps in time. It is not always clear in which order things happened.

The effect, however, is that the story becomes more believable and recognizable: after all, real life is unclear. Moreover, Tutberidze and the screenwriters have managed to add enough lightness to the film, so that ‘A Trip to Karabakh’ does not become too complicated, too heavy or too slow.

This lightness is mainly due to Gogliko’s role as a fool. Parts in which he does not play are sometimes a bit too long-winded. In the scenes in which attention is paid to the social context (the warring nations), the parties themselves remain too caught up in clichés, and it is unclear to what extent Gio himself is involved in this. Even in the midst of a war, he seems to be preoccupied with his personal problems.

A bigger deficit is the barely worked out relationship between Gio and Jana. Why is Gio’s environment not happy with her? Is she the “slut” Gio’s friends take her for? What is the role of Gio’s young (and handsome) stepmother in all of this? Questions that are raised, but which no longer receive the attention that you may expect.

Nevertheless, ‘A Trip to Karabakh’ manages to retell a well-known story in a refreshing way. Tutberidze has dared to show the complications of real life, without going for easy solutions. It’s a shame that that attempt doesn’t succeed equally well in every scene, but that’s more bearable than the easy answers you already see in enough other films.

Valera’s role is crucial in this. This artist, who is also a ‘prisoner’ himself, becomes a confidant for Gio, without giving him answers. The ‘gospel according to Valera’ just says: don’t dream of happiness if you don’t believe in happiness.

In that respect, the end of the film is typical: how it exactly ends with Gio (and Jana) remains unclear. All you know is that life goes on, even without happy endings. Or, as Valera speaks to Gio about the ‘heart’ and life in general: “it’s got an entrance but no exit”.