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A teenager is nine months pregnant.
GROWING PAINS is used with permission from Ellen Rodnianski. Learn more at ellenrodniansk....
Zhenya is a 15-year-old girl. She's also nine months pregnant. When her school is about to be inspected by the city, Zhenya is essentially kicked out by school leadership, who fear her pregnancy will tarnish their reputation.
Left to her own devices, she turns to family and friends, but she faces increasing amounts of rejection from her community, making her angrier than ever. No one is there for her as she wanders her city, and even her baby's father, Boris, is kept from her, thanks to his overprotective mother. But just when Zhenya seems the most alone, she finds an island of understanding and kindness, though whether or not it's sustainable is another question entirely.
Written by Tanya Leonova and directed with great humor and tenderness by Ellen Rodnianski, this short drama tracks the search for love and understanding from a young woman essentially abandoned by her community. Zhenya is, on the surface, like many other teenagers. She's smart, sarcastic, full of emotion and hormones. But she's also hugely pregnant, and she sparks negative reactions around her.
Of course, this makes Zhenya is even more sarcastic and spiky in demeanor, and the excellent character-centered writing offers keen observations of the negative cycle she finds herself in. Zhenya's search for connection and empathy at this most challenging point in her life drives the shape of the narrative, and her journey -- captured with a beautifully muted and dynamic visual naturalism -- offers a panorama of the relationships that form her life. Her family judges her; her friends are sweet but their ability to relate to her is limited. Zhenya realizes that she is increasingly alone emotionally.
Actor Polina Doroshkevich offers a multidimensional portrayal of Zhenya, capturing a teen's innate boldness and rebelliousness as well as the vulnerable girl lashing out at the world around her. And as the narrative carefully builds up to Zhenya's confrontation with the father of her baby, the audience suspects that Zhenya will finally meet her breaking point with the boy who got her pregnant and then abandoned her.
But then GROWING PAINS does something much different than expected, revealing its full humanity with a rich, measured characterization of Boris, played by actor Artem Raguzin with great empathy. The story wends its way into a more radiant, tender direction, one that makes us care for them as characters. It also results in a surprising decision by both teenagers, who reveal more emotional depth and compassion than given credit for by the world around them. As the pair take off into the film's final cliffhanger, audiences can't help but root for them, despite the odds or obstacles stacked up against them.