#1 - THE LESSON (Urok) by Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov (Bulgaria/Greece)

Indebted to the bone and in a desperate financial situation, a woman is driven to the limit, seeking means to get her and her family out of the tricky situation and progressively finds herself driven by impulses that push her away from her strong moral ideas. 

THE LESSON is a strikingly powerful and realistic portrayal of everyday absurdity. It is made all the more striking by the leading character of the teacher, played by MARGITA GOSHEVA in what is easily one of the best performances of recent times. She carries a lot of the weight of the film on her shoulders. It is also through her performance that this character driven storyline is all the more powerful. Her desperation is palpable throughout, and escalates with great intensity as the film progresses in a natural way. 

KRISTINA GROZEVA and PETAR VALCHANOV employ a style that favours authenticity, not unlike filmmaker such as the DARDENNE BROTHERS, with a lack of soundtrack and lengthy shots, as well as framing that seem to entrap its leading woman, and in turn make her situation seem all the more engulfing and desperate. Nevertheless, there is also a great use of irony throughout the narrative that sometimes even slips to a natural and unsettling brand of comedy, often inspired by the sad sudden turn of events that the teacher experiences. This is all cohesive to the character examination, impressive also because of its sheer honesty. 

THE LESSON doesn't necessarily ever want us to feel sympathetic towards her leading woman, and the style also makes sure to keep a distance and allows us to argue with her flaws and some of the decisions she makes. This heightens the interaction between audience and film in a convincing fashion, an interaction that compells the viewer to THE LESSON from start to finish and even leaves him or her thinking long after the end credits stop rolling.