BFI London Film Festival: Viktoria

Boryana dreams of life in ‘the West’ and is determined not to have a child in communist Bulgaria. Nonetheless, Viktoria is born (without a belly button) and is celebrated as ‘Socialist baby of the decade’, with Communist head of state Todor Zhivkov as her godfather. Maya Vitkova’s feature debut is constructed in three parts and covers several decades, interweaving the ambivalent relationship between three generations of women. Beautifully visualised and skillfully edited, Vitkova juxtaposes the personal against the political, with its meaning and motifs becoming clearer over time.

Ostensibly a film about the need for love, there is also room for political satire, humour, irony and lyricism. Detailing a nation coming to terms with an era and one of the most intelligent dramas about the post-1989 transition, Viktoria is the work of an ambitious and talented filmmaker. [Peter Hames]

Tickets for London Film Festival screenings can be purchased through the BFI and BFI Box Office 020 7928 3232 (9.30am-8.30pm daily) or the London Film Festival website: bfi.org.uk/lff