Nina and Iva cross every half an hour, as one cable car traverses the valley left to right and the other crosses right to left. The two conductors look forward to this fleeting encounter in their repetitive routine, and the crossings become increasingly flirtatious and creative, an opportunity to surprise and impress. Veit Helmer’s whimsical and uplifting Georgian comedy dispenses entirely with dialogue and you don’t miss it; the lovely rural setting and deadpan visual panache put us in the elevated heights of Amélie, Grand Budapest Hotel, or Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday. There’s an out of time appeal here, even if the queer romance speaks to the now.
As its charming vignettes and romantic sketches unfold, it is hard to not to fall in love with both women and their world… An antidote to the cluttered films that scream and shout, Gondola is a warm smile writ large on the screen. With a tone reminiscent of Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s Amélie, this romantic, enchanting, funny and fanciful film will have you leaving the cinema uplifted.
Chad Armstrong, The Queer Review
A wonderfully different approach to depicting same sex romance. Endearing performances, great comic timing and creative use of music make it a film which many viewers will want to watch again and again.
Jennie Kermode, Eye for Film
It makes sense a movie called Gondola would be as uplifting as it is. This movie is a celebration. It luxuriates in beautiful shots and a quirky, charming romance.
WLW
Veit Helmer
Nina Soseli, Mathilde Irrmann, Zuka Papuashivili
Georgia/Germany
2023
No dialogue
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Credits
Producer
Veit Helmer, Tsiako Abesadze, Noshre Chkhaidze
Cinematography
Goga Devdariani
Editor
Iordanis Karaisaridis, Moritz Geiser, Nikoloz Gulua
Original Music
Malcolm Arison, Sóley Stefánsdóttir
Production Design
Bacho Makharadze
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