In Marija Kavtaradze’s latest film, SLOW, contemporary dancer Elena meets Dovydas when he is assigned to interpret via sign language in a class she is teaching to deaf youth. Their connection is immediate, kinetic, and frictionless. As they gravitate toward each other, resisting the forces and interventions of their separate daily lives, their bond deepens from platonic to romantic. When Dovydas discloses his asexuality, the couple commits themselves to honoring their individual needs in tandem. As they continue to weave more tightly together, they struggle to negotiate sacrifice and compromise and are forced to discover the edges of their generosity toward the other. The result is an instantly recognizable dance between self and other, this one choreographed with elegance, grace, and love. The two leads, Greta Grinevičiūtė (Elena) and Kęstutis Cicėnas (Dovydas), conjure up undeniable chemistry that is heartbreakingly complicated, stubborn, and humanizing. Director and writer Marija Kavtaradze’s (Summer Survivors) sophomore feature shows off her fine tuned ability to portray intimacy and psychological exploration through dance, tense quietude, and stunningly singular examination of asexuality. Kavtaradze emphasis on the couple’s physicality and how the inherent limitations of a full physical expression plays out with own unique emotional expectations is superbly realized.

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