A Picture with Yuki

A young married couple travels to a Bulgarian village and takes pictures. One of them is fatal ... Unfortunately, the two became involved in a ridiculous car accident. The tragedy and the consequences of this turn their lives upside down, and Georgi and Yuki are forced to find answers for their future together...

I wanted to enjoy A Picture With Yuki more than I did. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't watch it. (At the time of writing, it was showing on Netflix here in Bulgaria.)

Yes, it's flawed. The chemistry between the two leads never feels convincing. Yes, there's call for a certain awkwardness given the setting of the film. But the awkwardness on view feels more due to the two leads' limited acting abilities than to any situational awkwardness. And while I have no objection in principle to films with a languid pace, the pace of A Picture With Yuki can occasionally feel positively glacial.

Those are the obvious flaws. Yet at its best - and there are several excellent scenes - A Picture With Yuki offers a fascinating window into the troubled relationship between the Bulgarian and Romany communities in rural Bulgaria. It touches on pride, guilt, suspicion and prejudice, and features compelling, painfully human performances by a grieving Romany couple. They are the real stars of this film, not the awkward charisma-free leads.

Certainly worth watching - especially if, like us, you're visiting Bulgaria and want to understand the country and its people better.

Beautifully shot, meaningful and poignant - I truly enjoyed this movie. The story slowly unfolds through thoughtful camera work, a good ratio of dialogue-to-visual storytelling, convincing performances and a great editing touch. Themes and symbols that emerge early on in the movie play an important part in it throughout, there is a great attention to detail here and nothing is without purpose. Georgi and Yuki, a Bulgarian/Japanese married couple living together in Canada, wish to have a child and decide to attempt in vitro procedures in Bulgaria. The relationship with Georgi's family is strained and the couple decides to spend time at Georgi's grandparents' house in the mountains instead. Upon arriving there, however, Georgi and Yuki get into a road accident that triggers intense feelings of guilt and remorse, ultimately challenging their moral and personal values, as well as their relationship. Being faced with the choice to overcome their fear of punishment or to run away, Georgi and Yuki's differing views, and their moral and cultural backgrounds are brought to light. 'A Picture with Yuki' is a rewarding experience for the patient and thoughtful viewer who does not shy away from emotionally challenging or sensitive topics. Highly recommended.

To keep this brief(ish), I found this an intriguing film that dealt with heavy issues of personal responsibility, prejudice, and forgiveness. These issues and the story they were framed inside are worth exploring. Overall, the film did a good job with this and was visually quite beautiful.

The main problem I had with the film was the lack of chemistry between the lead characters. I just couldn't feel them as a real couple who cared about each other beyond their stated purpose of making a baby together. In particular, I found the acting of the husband, Georgi, to be stiff. The other characters, particularly the Roma family, and the detective were very compelling. I wasn't sure about Yuki herself, but in a scene where she confronts other characters without Georgi present, I found Kiki Sugino's performance extremely moving. So I guess it was Georgi who was holding her back.

The ending didn't flow organically from the climax but felt tacked on. And the final two words spoken by Yuki would have been better left to the audience's imagination.

So I'd recommend this film with some reservations. Still it's great to see cinema from Bulgaria, and I can only hope for more and better to come.

This is definitely a movie which is worth watching. It is deep, the actors are good and I very much enjoyed watching it.