THE NEEDLE (IGLA) Eastern European Cinema

Part action thriller, part social problem film, The Needle marks Nougmanov as one of the most stylish and gifted of the new wave of Eastern European filmmakers. The film centers on Moro who returns to his hometown after a long absence to find his old girlfriend addicted to heroin. He tries to break her of the habit while simultaneously battling the local drug mafia. What begin as exciting action and chase sequences turn into clever deconstructions of the action genre that engage and parody the aesthetics of popular culture. The Needle’s rich mixture of styles, techniques, and themes merge to produce a landmark work in the new glasnost tradition.