A masterly but little-known filmmaker, Bartas first received critical acclaim for Three Days (1991), which won the FIPRESCI Prize for originality of style at Berlin, and The Corridor (1994), an outpour of anguish expressed by a mesmeric the cruel manner by which a corrupt system can impact the lives of its subjects. cast. Eastern Drift is a more structured film than his previous work, in which Bartas takes the lead role as a drug-runner struggling with attempts to ditch his life of crime and settle down with his French girlfriend. The film offers great performances, particularly from Klavdiya Korshunova’s prostitute on the run, and it retains the director’s talent for capturing a European underworld populated by those forever ignored by the mainstream.

This film is screening as part of the IFI Lithuanian Film Focus.