April: LFF Film Review
April tells a really important story about women’s rights in Georgia and director Déa Kulumbegashvili is very brave for making a film that’s critical of her country. However, the inaccessible filmmaking style hinders its message and will put people off.
The film follows Nina (Ia Sukhitashvili), an obstetrician in rural Georgia who is accused of negligence following the death of a baby during childbirth in hospital. She becomes the subject of an investigation which could potentially expose the fact that she gives secretive and illegal abortions to women in the villages.
I liked the film’s pro-choice message and everything Kulumbegashvili wanted to say about women’s lack of agency and empowerment in her country. However, I seriously struggled with the storytelling style – it’s very slow, everyone takes forever to speak, shots are often held for a prolonged period of time and it took all of my strength not to fall asleep.
April contains some unflinching scenes, such as the most graphic on-screen depiction of childbirth I’ve ever seen and an uncomfortable sustained take of an abortion being performed. The camera stays on the girl’s midsection for the duration of the procedure so you don’t see anything explicit but you can hear everything you need to know. I won’t be forgetting either of those anytime soon.
Sukhitashvili gives a committed and nuanced performance as the complicated Nina, who dangerously looks for physical intimacy with strangers in a country where women aren’t supposed to have sexual desires let alone vocalise them.
I support the statement Kulumbegashvili was trying to make with her film but the slow pace, prolonged shots and unconventional storytelling choices really held it back for me. It was tricky rating this because the story and message deserve a four but the filmmaking style warrants a two. So I split it down the middle.
Seen at the London Film Festival. No release date yet