186 KILOMETRES

The English title states the distance between the Estonian capital Tallinn and the town of Tartu, which is the destination of the film’s main protagonist: the failed actor Jan Uuspõld. What is intended to be a simple journey turns into a tragi-comic Way of the Cross during which the traveller undergoes various forms of torment at the hands of his fellow Estonians. Just punishment, some might say, for a waster whose life is governed by drink and gambling. For his belligerent wife, a night he spent in prison was the last straw: she threw him out. Having lost his job at the same time, an engagement at a distant theatre remains his sole prospect – but getting there turns out to be more difficult than he thought. For the actor, every stranger he meets is a potential lift to Tartu, but that procession of wacky prophets and oddballs have other plans. Especially since most of them know his face from TV, and are reluctant to let a celebrity out of their clutches without getting their money’s worth – and be it his pronouncement of a toast to some dead person of whom he has never heard. Uuspõld ends up wandering through Estoniaon foot, with no idea where he is and increasingly uncertain about who he is. Jan Uuspõld plays a role based on his own experiences as actor, co-directors Andres Maimik and Rain Tolk enlisted the services of several genuine celebrities, including the Estonian President. Uuspõld’s search for the road to Tartu can also be read as an attempt to find the identity of a nation whose circumstances have radically changed.