Consequences

Eighteen-year-old Andrej is sent to a youth detention centre. The rule for surviving inside is clear: belong to a group. He works his way into the circle around Željko, the informal leader of the unit, and does whatever is asked to be accepted. He also has something he tells nobody, and the closer he gets to Željko the harder it becomes to keep. Darko Štante's first film takes on the order of the institution and repressed sexuality at once. Violence here is not punishment but currency: the only way to earn standing. The telling is cold and distanced, and the film neither absolves Andrej nor condemns him. Matej Zemljič plays Andrej and Timon Šturbej plays Željko. The director worked in youth correctional institutions before making the film, and that knowledge of the setting shows. Who it's for: Viewers who like Slovenian and Eastern European independent cinema, detention narratives, and hard queer drama. Who it's not for: The violence and sexual content are heavy and the protagonist is not trying to be sympathetic. No resolution is offered.