THE SOUTHERN CHRONICLES

Special Features: 2026 Oscar® Selection, Lithuania

[PIETINIA KRONIKAS]
Lithuania’s highest grossing film ever is an endearing coming-of-age tale set in Lithuania in the early 1990s, just after the country gained independence from the Soviet Union. Big, brawny working-class teen Rimantas (Džiugas Grinys) spends his days planning get-rich schemes with his best friend Mindė (Robertas Petraitis), playing rugby in the local league and running afoul of the authorities. That is, until he meets the studious Monika, a young woman from a middle-class family. Suddenly Rimantas is borrowing books from the library, studying for his school exams and even writing his own poetry. He will do anything to win her love — even read — but their class differences threaten their future together. Adapted from Rimantas Kmita’s novel, THE SOUTHERN CHRONICLES is a stylish and charming film whose groovy needle drops (“Pump Up the Jam” and MC Hammer’s “U Can’t Touch This,” to name two), archival footage and lavish costumes evoke nostalgia for the ’90s while telling a touching story about identity and hope on both personal and national levels. –Javier Chavez

DIR Ignas Miškinis; SCR Eglė Vertelytė, from the novel by Rimantas Kmita; PROD Lukas Trimonis. Lithuania/Estonia, 2024, color, 120 min. In Lithuanian with English subtitles. NOT RATED

Run Time: 120 Minutes

Opening Date: Tuesday, December 09, 2025

Genre: Comedy, drama

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