El beso del oso

Being a fan of Rebecka Liljeberg I picked up a copy of this film on DVD with great expectations. I was not disappointed. The story is that of the relationship between Lola (Liljeberg) and Misha the bear. Lola is a performer with a shabby traveling circus. Her mother and step father also work in the circus but life is far from perfect. Lola is given a baby bear and forms the kind of loving bond she is unable to have with the emotionally damaged circus people that surround her. In response to her love Misha reveals to her that he is a shape shifter and can transform from a bear to a man (Sergei Bodrov Jr). A beautiful love story unfolds with a unique and unexpected twist at the end. Rebecka Liljeberg is wonderful embracing the sad, lonely Lola trapped in the cheap and tawdry world of circus life. The film is directed admirably by Sergei Bodrov Sr. The soundtrack is haunting and sad but gets a little too heavy handed at times in my opinion. I would recommend this film to anyone interested in something a little different from the standard Hollywood fair.