Educational Media Reviews Online

Street Days is an engaging look at post-Communism life in the Georgia capital of Tbilisi. Guga Kotetishvili portrays Checkie, unemployed and middle aged, who struggles with a heroin addiction and the associated criminality. Checkie spends his days hanging out with old friends in front of the school they once attended and where Checkie's young son currently goes. These disenfranchised men spend their days trying to score drugs and have attracted the attention of the local police. In order to raise money for his son's education, Checkie agrees to get drugs for the teenage son of a wealthy friend. Plans, of course, go awry, leading to a tragic end.

Kotetishvili excels as Checkie, giving the melodramatic aspects of the film true emotional weight as he struggles with his addiction, with his desire to do right by his son in the face of unemployment, with the disappointment his ex-wife shows for him, and with his attempt to navigate a scheme that steadily (and sometimes humorously) goes from bad to worse. A scene in which Checkie visits his wealthy friend during a party to ask for money is heartrending.

The frustration and desperation among the old friends is palpable. Director Levan Koguashvli sets most of the film in the streets of Tbilisi and in the run down school, both of which add to the sense of economic desperation. The lean script takes place over a short timeframe lending extra urgency to Checkie's plight.

The film features mild violence and drug use making this an excellent film for older students and adults regarding the hardships faced in one of the many countries navigating their independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Awards
• Golden Lily for Best Film goEast Film Festival