Better known for the Oscar-winning brilliance of his debut No Man’s Land, Bosnian director Danis Tanović delivers a refreshingly escapist counterpoint here. Swapping the gritty landscape of war that tinges his previous work for a luminous Adriatic refuge, this entertaining light-toned rom-com centers on a feisty woman (Anja Matković, also co-writer) arriving on Prvić, a tiny, car-less Croatian island of fewer than 500 people, to claim a familial inheritance. Forced to linger, she takes a barmaid job, navigating the eccentric local bunch and a quirky romance with a visiting novelist. The gorgeous setting functions as a palpable character, lending a sun-drenched nostalgia to this nuanced blend of breezy humor and deeper themes of generational debt. Subtle and sensual, and filled with highly effective running jokes (stoned cows are a highlight), Tanović’s film elegantly charts the heroine’s delayed coming-of-age while hinting at the fragile beauty of second chances.
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