Rocky Road to Berlin

Olha Riashyna's 2024 Ukrainian film follows Kuzma, a musician who sets out for Berlin with a friend three days before his concert. The plan is to take an old Soviet car to a collector and exchange it for a better one; the journey does not go as intended. The film follows the road movie template. The car keeps breaking down, problems arise at borders, and the difference between the two friends becomes clearer the longer they travel; the humour comes from those mishaps. Behind it lie the everyday difficulties of leaving Ukraine for Europe; visas, money and trust sit inside the narrative. The tone is kept light and the film does not take the political context as its direct subject. Who it's for: those curious about road comedies and contemporary Ukrainian cinema. Who it's not for: viewers expecting a deep narrative; the film is episodic and its plot thin.