''Loss'' (, literary "Unnecessary people") is a 2008 Lithuanian

psychological thriller Psychological thriller is a Film genre, genre combining the thriller (genre), thriller and psychological fiction genres. It is commonly used to describe literature or films that deal with psychological narratives in a thriller or thrilling setting ...

film directed, co-written and co-produced by Latvian film director Māris Martinsons. In October 2008, it was announced that the film was Lithuania's submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in the 81st Academy Awards, becoming the first Lithuanian

feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...

ever to be submitted for the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

Awards

The international premiere of ''Loss'' was held in

2008 Shanghai International Film Festival The 2008 Shanghai International Film Festival is the 11th such festival devoted to international cinema to be held in Shanghai, China. It was held from June 14–22, 2008. Hong Kong film director Wong Kar-wai was the head of jury at this year's fil ...

, where it was awarded with 2 ''Jin Jue'' (Golden Goblet) awards: Best Director for Māris Martinsons and Best Music for

Andrius Mamontovas Andrius Mamontovas (born 23 August 1967) is a Lithuanian rock musician. He is also a songwriter, actor, performer and record producer. He was one of the co-founders of the Lithuanian rock band Foje and the initiator of the LT United project. P ...

. It is the first Lithuanian feature film to be screened in the competition of an A class festival and awarded prestigious prizes. In 2009 ''Loss'' was awarded with the

Lielais Kristaps ''Lielais Kristaps'' is the highest award given in Latvian cinema. Established in 1977, it is given out at the ''Latvian National Film Festival''. Due to different reasons, the festival has not been held in 1992, 1994 to 1995, 1997 and 1999 ...

award, Latvia's highest prize awarded in cinema.

Synopsis

''Loss'' is a story about a priest (

) in Ireland who meets a woman Valda (

Valda Bičkutė Valda may refer to: People * Augusto Valda Vargas (born 1957), Bolivian politician and journalist * Valda Aveling (1920–2007), Australian pianist, harpsichordist and clavichordist * Valda Cooper, American journalist and reporter * Valda Hansen ...

) from his native Lithuania only to find out her mysterious identity is closely connected with the darkest secret of his past. Desperate for a better life Valda left Lithuania for Ireland, hoping to find a new purpose in life but failed to fulfill a promise to come back she made to her alleged son. Now a boy is adopted by Nora (

Dalia Michelevičiūtė Dalia may refer to: People * Dalia (given name), a given name and listing of people with the name * Dalia (Egyptian singer), of album ''Bahebak enta'' 1998 * Badrunnesa Dalia, Bengali singer known as Dalia Places * Dalia (oil field), an offshor ...

), a childless ex-wife of the desperate businessman Ben (

Kostas Smoriginas Kostas Smoriginas (born April 22, 1953) is a Lithuanian theatre and cinema actor and musician.
"Kostas Smoriginas" at cin ...

) whose life is falling from his hands. Caught in a struggle with her husband's mistress Laima ( Daiva Tamošiūnaitė-Budrė) she must fight not only for her company but also for the custody of a child who now is her only hope in life. According to ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' magazine film critic Eddie Cockrell, the satisfying Lithuanian drama was inspired by ''

Six Degrees of Separation Six degrees of separation is the idea that all people are six or fewer social connections away from each other. As a result, a chain of "friend of a friend" statements can be made to connect any two people in a maximum of six steps. It is al ...

'' and

Dostoevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. () was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist and journalist. He is regarded as one of the greatest novelists in both Russian and world literature, and many of his works are considered highly influenti ...

’s line "the tears of that one tortured child". ''Loss'' delves into the harsh realities of six people's lives whose destinies are brought together after a tragic accident that happened over two decades ago.

References

External links

*
''Loss'' review at ''Variety''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Loss (Film) 2008 films 2008 psychological thriller films Films shot in County Wicklow Films shot in Lithuania Lithuanian thriller films Lithuanian-language films 2000s Lithuanian films