Film: Lilya 4-Ever
Release date: 22nd September 2003
Certificate: 18
Running time: 109 mins
Director: Lukas Moodysson
Starring: Oksana Akinshina, Artyom Bogucharsky, Lyubov Agapova, Liliya Shinkaryova, Elina Benenson
Genre: Crime/Drama
Studio: Metrodome
Format: DVD
Country: Sweden/Denmark
Written and directed by Lukas Moodysson, Lilya 4-Ever focuses on isolation, poverty and the natural human desire to want to better our circumstances. Set ambiguously “somewhere which used to be the Soviet Union,” Moodysson aims to portray the story of a teenage girl born without luck or privilege. Lilya must learn to survive abandonment and poverty and use desperate means to gain her escape, with tragic consequences.
Lilya lives on a rundown estate block with her single mother, who we learn has secured passage to America, but does not take her only daughter with her. Lilya is left to the care of a sole Aunt who does not look kindly upon her new responsibility. Neither the school, social services, nor her friend Natascha provide support or kindness, and with food and basic amenities running out, Lilya turns desperately to prostitution as a means to survive.
She reluctantly strikes up a friendship with a troubled younger boy called Volodya in a part maternal, part romantic relationship which is to be only constant in the short segment of her life we are invited into.
While looking for her next client, hope arrives in the form of Andrei, a handsome suitor who is on vacation in her town. Expressing desire to spend time with Lilya, it seems hope and a chance at love has come at last, and Andrei soon offers a chance to escape the cycle of poverty by smuggling her with him to Sweden.
However, Andrei has not told Lilya everything, and she is soon to learn that her escape from pain will not be as easy as she had at first hoped…
Oksana Akinshina convincingly portrays the naivety of a teenage girl with all the bittersweet emotion from learning how adults can betray and hurt others. First her mother, then Natascha, and later Andrei all force Lilya to mature prematurely when they hurt her, and Akinshina realistically demonstrates the ability of people backed into a corner in learning how to survive by whatever means necessary. First reacting with anger and shock, and later with a dull numbing acceptance that these are the cards she has been dealt.
In dealing with the issue of child poverty, illegal smuggling, prostitution and sexual assault, Moodysson rarely offers a break from seemingly unrelenting misery. The film offers an insight into a country whose socialist politics were once championed as an ideal for the people, yet whose people were the first to be forgotten when capitalism took over.
The lighting is often grey and miserable, the buildings devoid of luxury and in disrepair, reflecting the bleakness of the character’s situation. Lilya’s story is believable, the people who do her damage equally so - the film, at times, even seeming like more of a documentary or biography than creative entertainment.
There are often subtle references to current and past Russian culture, such as the teenagers’ obsession with hardcore techno music and the latest sportswear, which has recently spurned a black market for forgeries in Russia, or the discarded party propaganda, addressing comrades of a distant time.
We are also introduced, briefly, to an elderly neighbour, and hear the recently deceased owner of Lilya’s flat being described mockingly as a “war hero.” Lilya and her friends’ negative attitudes to both of these characters demonstrate that despite the sympathy generated by us for Lilya’s plight, she in turn does not offer the same in turn, highlighting the human tendency to be inward looking, and the ability of youth to dismiss the past.
Although doubtlessly a realistic insight into life at the lowest point in society’s order, Lilya 4-Ever does not offer much more on top of documentary-style heartstring tugging. This film is ideal for those interested in learning more of what is a reality for many poor and desperate unwanted teenagers, not only in Russia but in many parts of the world today as the gap between rich and poor widens. However, this a true to life tragedy, and there is little to distract from the repetitive hammer blows that this young girl receives.
Unlike Moodysson’s previous work, Together, which had delightfully intricate characterisation, Lilya 4-Ever has little to offer in analysis of relationships between people, as Lilya does not have any successful relationships to speak of. Her main friendship with Volodya is in one sense a touching demonstration of childhood innocence, and the strong bond which can develop in desperate times, but they are both children, and due to this, the conversation itself never evolves to an adult level. There is a beauty in this, of course; however, this film is one of emotion and sadness, and not one for those who are expecting the witty exchanges and character variety that Together provided.
Moodysson has a talent for reflecting the culture and essence of a certain time and drawing out emotion from the location and the people. However, he is so consistent in this that you should not expect respite from the themes he is passionate about expressing. Definitely worth its initial critical acclaim in so much as being a realistically moving plot and shot well, but not one for the emotionally delicate or those prone to depression. AT
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