In what is quite frequent the case with first-time feature directors, Tato Kotetishvili‘s debut “Holy Electricity” is actually a collage of parts that could have been short movies by themselves. Quite impressively though, the Georgian manages to connect them in a fashion that is both absurdly entertaining and makes sense, mostly through the use of slapstick humor. The film won the Golden Leopard – Filmmakers of the Present in Locarno and is currently screening in Thessaloniki.
Holy Electricity is screening at Thessaloniki International Film Festival
Young Conga has just lost his father and his cousin, Bart, is promising to take care of him as if he was his own son. Bart, however, has some issues with loan sharks, and in general, his financial situation is not exactly great, in what it seems to be the case with everyone in Tbilisi. While searching in a metal waste dump to find something to sell, they stumble upon a case of metal crosses, which they decorate with red neon tubes, in an effort at some kind of art form. When they see that people are interested in the first cross they made, they decide to decorate the others, in a decision that brings them around the city, selling them door-to-door.
In their ‘travels’, they stumble upon an elderly contortionist, women with cats, a drummer, a drag queen and her ‘gang’, a Romani woman whom Conga starts flirting with by asking non-stop questions and many others, as every day finds them essentially in a new place. While they are having fun, their issues do not seem to abandon them.
Although there is a certain sense of messiness in the movie, Kotetishvilli holds the reins to a point, by having all the events and characters revolving around his two protagonists, who, both individually and as a duo, are quite entertaining to watch. The affection the director feels for both of them is rather evident throughout the movie, with the same applying to Tbilisi and his people; most of which are presented as loveable loons.
At the same time, and through this episodic approach that also leads to a narrative that could be described as that of a road movie, the director also manages to make his comments, thus providing a series of other focal points. Family seems to be a central one, but regret and trauma are there too, as is romance and some minor comments on queer issues.
At the same time though, and although both the characters and the episodes are definitely fun to watch, the movie does emerge as repetitious after a point, with the plethora of episodes and characters not working in its favor, particularly as time passes. In that fashion, the editing by Nodar Nozadze presents some issues, since some of the episodes could definitely have been omitted, although the flow of the scenes and the overall pace are definitely fitting for the narrative style here.
Kotetishivili’s own cinematography is definitely among the traits here, with his long shots in particular being quite intriguing and well planned. The same applies to the overall visual approach, that occasionally borders the documentary, with the absurdness though, also pointing towards a kind of dystopia the two protagonists traverse, in a duality that works exceptionally well. The use of music, which changes a number of time from somber to rather intense, adds to the aforementioned sense, while highlighting the cornucopia of cultural and social elements that are found in Tbilisi.
“Holy Electricity” may be too much of the same thing on occasion, but it is also quite fun, well shot, and its protagonists’ appeal is undeniable, in a series of traits that definitely allow it to overcome any shortcomings.
