Iris Elezi & Thomas Logoreci – Bota (2014)

Quote:
The title, which translates as “The World,” refers to the cafe-bar where most of the action unfolds. Perched on stilts, with a dilapidated Mercedes on the roof and mint-green walls full of original artwork, Bota is the spot where the hopes and dreams of the three main characters are revealed — and often dashed.

The film was selected as the Albanian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards but it was not nominated.

Bota overlooks a dusty road on the outskirts of a small village, consisting of a few run-down communist-era high-rises. Throughout the film, a running joke sees herds of animals wander by — sheep, cows, even ducks. So little happens in the vicinity that the chief waitress, Juli (Flonja Kodheli), doesn’t even have a cell phone. But in the old times, under the dictator Enver Hoxha, the area housed a penal camp for “enemies of the state,” some of whom were even executed there, and their bodies thrown into the marshes. Now, the construction of a nearby highway creates hope that progress and perhaps even some prosperity may be at hand.

Juli grew up with her great-aunt Noje (Tinka Kurti, the first lady of Albanian cinema), but neither Noje nor Juli’s conniving older cousin, Benni (Artur Gorishti), the owner of Bota, ever discusses family history. Still, Juli and fellow waitress Nora (non-pro Fioralba Kryemadhi, who brings a Marilyn Monroe-like vulnerability and sexuality to the role) feel trapped by the past. They can see the promise of modern Albania, but are somehow unable to find a way to claim their place in it. Meanwhile, slick, polyglot Benni, a generation older than the girls and an opportunist of the first order, is one of the few who found the means to leave the village. Although Noje and Juli don’t realize it yet, his profit comes at their expense. Nora, too, suffers at his hands: She’s his mistress and pregnant with his child.

While the film exudes considerable charm throughout, perhaps the helmers’ most seductive scenes take place during a lively nighttime celebration that Benni hopes will lure investors for Bota. The lensing, editing, performances and music capture a magical, but sadly only momentary sense of potential for the characters.

Bota-KG.mkv

General
Container:	Matroska
Runtime:	1h 46mn
Size:	999 MiB
DXVA:	Incompatible
Minimum settings:	Not met
Video
Codec:	x264
Resolution:	1280x692
Aspect ratio:	1.85:1
Frame rate:	24.000 fps
Bit rate:	1 153 kb/s
Audio
2.0ch MP3 @ 128 kb/s

https://nitro.download/view/1CB5431981093A1/Bota-KG.mkv

Language(s):Albanian
Subtitles:English hardcoded subtitles