Labina Mitevska Movies

Eager to prove herself to her colleagues and family, the sole female detective on the Sofia Police Force attempts to crack on an especially perplexing missing persons case. A local man has vanished without a trace. Though the police have no solid evidence with which to convict him, they suspect that the man's brother Plamen (Krassimir Dokov) may have played a crucial role in the crime, and swiftly bring him in for questioning. Though the Chief Inspector (Kliment Denchev) is doubtful that fledgling investigator Alexandra Yakimova (Svetlana Yancheva) has what it takes to elicit a confession, he nevertheless gives her three weeks to do so before letting Plamen walk free. The only problem now lies in the fact that Plamen seems to have taken a vow of silence, and as the chasm between Alexandra and her family grows ever wider due to her obsession with the case, it begins to appear as if the case is slipping between her fingers. Later, as Alexandra and her assistant Ludmil (Dejan Donkov) set out to question Plamen's family and co-workers once again, she begins to wonder if the suspect will finally talk if given a chance to see his wife Nusha (Tanya Shahova). Much to her surprise, Plamen and Nusha seem to share a truly heartfelt relationship, a revelation that prompts a frustrated Alexandra to get a bit more creative with her investigatory techniques. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Libina Mitevska stars as a mother in search of the daughter that was taken from her when the family was forced into an internment camp during the Bosnian conflict in director Christian Wagner's award-winning family drama. Thirty year-old Senada (Mitevska) is a successful real estate broker and accomplished volleyball player living in the Bosnia and Herzegovina village of Brcko. Though in the surface it would appear as if Senada has everything a woman could want in life, her family has been ripped apart by war and she is haunted by the memories of the daughter that was forcefully taken from her in one of Bosnia's darkest hours. Not only did her marriage to the kindly Samir (Senad Basic) crumble during the conflict that consumed the land, but her daughter Aida was taken from the pair by aid workers and spirited away to an undisclosed location. Convinced that she has located her daughter in the Ulm, Germany, Senada enlists the aid of a sympathetic trafficker named Dzigera (Zdenko Jelcic) in crossing the border and avoiding the radar of local aid worker Mrs. Jandrasko (Katrin Sass). Upon discovering that her daughter has been renamed and is currently being raised by a well-to-do German couple, the desperate mother watches from afar while planning to recover the unsuspecting adolescent who seems to have all but forgotten her turbulent past. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A huge hit in the Czech Republic, Samotari is an ensemble piece reminiscent of Cameron Crowe's Singles, Jasmin Dizdar's Beautiful People, and Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia. In the Czech capital of Prague, a group of friends and lovers searches for the meaning of their existence. Robert (Miki Kren) is a hustler who works for a travel agency and spends his spare time hitting on bartender Vesna (Labina Mitevska of Before the Rain), a recent Macedonian immigrant who is trying to locate her father. Robert has also tricked a young woman named Hanka (Jitka Schneiderova) into separating from her disc jockey boyfriend Peter (Sasa Rasilov); Hanka subsequently gets cozy with philosophizing stoner Jacob (Jiri Machacek) but is also being stalked rather clumsily by neurosurgeon Ondrej (Ivan Trojan). Ondrej happens to be Hanka's ex, and has abandoned his twin daughters and ambitious wife Lenka (Dana Sedlakova), who is a colleague of Robert's. Coincidentally, Lenka is in the process of arranging a tourist visit to the home of Hanka's parents. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide

Milcho Manchevski's first feature film is a three-part story of the violence and political chaos tearing apart the newly independent nation of Macedonia (former Yugoslavia). In part one, Kiril (Grégoire Colin), an Orthodox monk, encounters Zamira (Labina Mitevska), a Muslim from Albania. Zamira is frightened and has nowhere to go, so Kiril lets her stay in his cell, knowing that if the authorities find her, his peaceful life will be shattered. The second segment, set in London, concerns Anne (Katrin Cartlidge), married to stable but boring Nick (Jay Villiers) but enjoying an affair with Macedonian photographer Aleksander (Rade Serbedzija); Anne is trying to decide if she should stay with Nick or leave with Aleksander, before unexpected events make the decision for her. The conclusion follows Aleksander back to Macedonia; while he's tired of photographing war, he finds no sanctuary in his home town, as Christians and Muslims wage war and he accidentally causes the death of innocent bystanders. Before the Rain received an 1995 Academy Award nomination as Best Foreign Language Film. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide