9. Glory (Slava); movie review

GLORY (SLAVA)
Cert 12A
101 mins
BBFC advice: Contains moderate sex references, discriminatory references, strong language

Over the years, I trained many journalists some of whom have ended up as media advisors (or spin doctors) in the highest echelon.
Interestingly, two have been head of the department of transport's press office so I must alert them to this bitingly dark satire on their equivalent in Bulgaria.
Dare I say that Margita Gosheva's media guru is rather more intense than I imagine my former employees to be but that is not to say her ilk don't exist in UK politics. I am sure they do.
Gosheva plays Julia Staykova who control freakery has no bounds (she even takes IVF injections behind the curtain of a press conference).
She whirls into action when an honest railway linesman (Stefan Denolyubov) hands over a huge wedge of cash he discovers on the tracks.
She arranges a grand award ceremony, leaving the poor worker out of his depth so her minister can secure a photo opportunity.
But this turns out to be just the beginning of the exploration of the stammering, impoverished loner.
Glory is expertly written by its directors Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov and co-author Decho Taralezhkov who pile on surprise after surprise in a stunning last 30 minutes.
Their movie begins as what appears to be a dark comedy, eliciting a couple of belly laughs but turns into an expose of the abuse of power.
Denolyubov is superb as the railway worker who must have been wishing he had kept the money to himself but never says so.
He is a character with whom everyone would want to empathise and yet, if they are honest, would probably cross the street to avoid.
Meanwhile, Gosheva initially prompted memories of Yes Minister or In The Thick Of It before sinister turns are taken.
Glory was Bulgaria's entry for last year's Oscars but was not nominated. It should have been and if they have more like this one, I would like to see them.

Reasons to watch: a highly original political thriller
Reasons to avoid: the machinations of the press office might be tricky to follow for some

Laughs: two
Jumps: none
Vomit: none
Nudity: none
Overall rating: 8/10

Co-director Peter Valchanov:  The film starts where the news story ends. We read this story about a lineman who found а huge pile of cash on the railway, gave it to the police and was later given this quasi-award for valor, and we thought it was a very fertile premise for a broader and more revealing plot. 

The big question: What would you do if you tripped over a hue amount of lost or abandoned money?

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