From the director of 2021’s enigmatic What Do We See When We Look at the Sky?, Dry Leaf is a contemplative journey through rural Georgia from writer/director Alexandre Koberidze.
Lisa – a young sports photographer – disappears one day, leaving only a note for her parents asking them not to go looking for her. But her father Irakli (David Koberidze) can’t accept the situation and sets out to try to find her. Travelling with Lisa’s friend Levani (who happens to be invisible – just go with it), they embark on a journey through rural Georgia, visiting football stadiums along the way, which Lisa was documenting at the time of her disappearance.
Along the way, Irakli has encounters with groups of children waiting to play football, and with some elderly people too, which are fascinating and which we can only assume are improvised.
The key thing about the visuals, however, is that the film was made entirely on an old Sony Ericsson mobile phone. This produces hazy, pixelated images which both imbue the film with a nostalgic, autumnal feel, but also, let’s be honest, can be a little trying. The landscapes and colours hint at real beauty, but it’s not possible to appreciate them fully, given that viewers today are used to much more high-definition visuals. But clearly this is a specific choice on the part of director/writer Alexandre Koberidze, and so it is necessary to accept, despite the potential frustration.
One of the huge plus points of Dry Leaf is the music, composed by Giorgi Koberidze. So many different styles of music are employed, and each beautifully compliments what’s on the screen at the time. It’s gorgeously haunting.
Clocking in at a little over 3 hours, Dry Leaf is not for anyone in a rush. It does not have the abundance of charm or the narrative drive of Koberidze’s earlier What Do We See When We Look at the Sky, but it does look and sound beautiful.
Dry Leaf plays in the Dare strand of the London Film Festival 2025.
From the director of 2021’s enigmatic What Do We See When We Look at the Sky?, Dry Leaf is a contemplative journey through rural Georgia from writer/director Alexandre Koberidze.
Lisa – a young sports photographer – disappears one day, leaving only a note for her parents asking them not to go looking for her. But her father Irakli (David Koberidze) can’t accept the situation and sets out to try to find her. Travelling with Lisa’s friend Levani (who happens to be invisible – just go with it), they embark on a journey through rural Georgia, visiting football stadiums along the way, which Lisa was documenting at the time of her disappearance.
Along the way, Irakli has encounters with groups of children waiting to play football, and with some elderly people too, which are fascinating and which we can only assume are improvised.
The key thing about the visuals, however, is that the film was made entirely on an old Sony Ericsson mobile phone. This produces hazy, pixelated images which both imbue the film with a nostalgic, autumnal feel, but also, let’s be honest, can be a little trying. The landscapes and colours hint at real beauty, but it’s not possible to appreciate them fully, given that viewers today are used to much more high-definition visuals. But clearly this is a specific choice on the part of director/writer Alexandre Koberidze, and so it is necessary to accept, despite the potential frustration.
One of the huge plus points of Dry Leaf is the music, composed by Giorgi Koberidze. So many different styles of music are employed, and each beautifully compliments what’s on the screen at the time. It’s gorgeously haunting.
Clocking in at a little over 3 hours, Dry Leaf is not for anyone in a rush. It does not have the abundance of charm or the narrative drive of Koberidze’s earlier What Do We See When We Look at the Sky, but it does look and sound beautiful.
Dry Leaf plays in the Dare strand of the London Film Festival 2025.
Share this:
Like this:
Discover more from The Movie Isle
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.