And Then We Danced is a dramatic Georgian gay romance directed by gay Swedish film-maker Levan Akin who is of Georgian descent. It is his response to seeing newsclips in 2013 of a huge very violent right-wing mob led by Orthodox Church priests (with suspected Russian involvement) in Tbilisi viciously attacking a small group of brave LGBTIQ IDAHOBIT marchers.
Levan Akin returned to Tbilisi recently to make this film to support LGBTIQ Georgians. Although young Georgians reject the traditional culture because of its patriarchal, homophobic aspects, the director loves other aspects of it. He says that Georgia used to be more tolerant of minorities.
He developed the screenplay by drawing on the real-life experiences of gay Georgians he met or interacted with on social media.
The film shows the story of Merab, a young man from a family of Georgian traditional dancers. He is played by the brilliant 20 year-old dancer and debut actor Levan Gelbakhiani. He is training very hard in the hope of being recruited into the National Dance Ensemble. He has been partnered with Mary (Ana Javakishvili) since they were 10 years old and it is assumed they are a couple.
Aleko (Kakha Gogidze) their harshly authoritarian teacher at the feeder school humiliates his students. He insists that Merab must dance "like a nail", "like a monument" and that Mary stop showing her desire for Merab in her eyes. "There is no sex in Georgian dancing" and she must portray "virginal purity". He and the selector from the National Ensemble say that Georgian dance embodies the spirit of the nation.
They claim that Georgian dancing used to be "softer" but it was hardened up 50 years ago (when Georgia was part of the USSR), accentuating mountain warrior characteristics. For the men, it is spectacularly athletic. It looks like they must be at risk of crippling injuries.
The drama intensifies with the arrival of of Irakli (Bachi Valishvili), a smiling new student from Batumi. It immediately becomes clear that he is a serious rival for a vacancy in the National Ensemble (caused by the sacking of a dancer caught having gay sex with man during a tour to Yerevan). Nevertheless, Merab finds himself more and more attracted to Irakli. The attraction is mutual as is evident when Aleko orders them to rehearse a traditional male dance duet. The original expressive dance has been stripped of its queer seductiveness, but Merab and Irakli dance it with broad smiles, shining eyes and androgynous hand movements.
The two actors make a very attractive and convincingly romantic couple. Gelbakhiani makes an absolute picture of the joy of falling in love for the first time.
Merab and Irakli are unquestioningly accepting of their emerging sexuality, but cautiously well aware of widespread societal homophobia, including among the other male students against whom they are competing. Irakli tells the other students he has a girl friend in Batumi.
The future of their relationship as it develops is challenged not only by widespread homophobia but the needs of their families and their roles in helping them in the harsh daily struggle to make ends meet.
Swedish cinematographer Lisabi Fridell shot the dance sequences and intimate scenes in warm tones. Her style throughout the film is very fluid.
The soundtrack features many Georgian folk songs and a particularly beautiful a cappella polyphonic piece sung by family and guests at a weekend party in a house in the mountains. It is there that Merab dances in private moment for Irakli with Robyn's "Honey". Kite's "Johnny Boy" is also heard with its line, "I know myself". There's also an ABBA song which has been a hit in Georgia since Soviet times. Benny Andersson's son Ludwig is one of the co-producers.
When push comes to sad shove, emotional support for Merab comes surprisingly from a troublesome straight character in an intimate scene.
Despite the homophobia, nobody dies.
The brilliant final sequence portrays defiance and courage in a tour de force.
The film premiered in the Directors' Fortnight at Cannes this year where it was deservedly greeted with a standing ovation.
It has been sold to distributors in Western Europe other countries and probably will be released in the UK and the US.