CELTS

In 1993 Belgrade, a family hosts a party to celebrate their daughter Minja’s eighth birthday, opening their doors to friends and family who bring over their children, new lovers, and simmering resentments. Kids circle around Minja’s handmade Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles costume in one room while adults smoke and pass around drinks in another, the whole house growing fraught with squabbles and passions. At the heart of it is Minja’s mother Majka, growing increasingly numb amidst the frenetic atmosphere, craving something genuine and new. First-time director Milica Tomović beautifully evokes the intimate chaos of an off-the-rails house party, with perfectly rendered period details reflecting the collapse of Yugoslavia. A girl sheltering from the rain under her father’s coat; drunken partygoers falling into formation on a stair landing; an errant frog resting amid the leftover cake: countless moments resonate like visceral memories for characters and audience alike. –Drea Clark