AllMovie

First time feature filmmaker Ilmar Taska weaves this mysterious tale of love, alienation, and confusion centered on a bold murder committed right on the stony streets of the ancient Estonian capitol. Lovely Älis and her tyrannical boyfriend had just finished eating dessert when they stepped out the café and he is suddenly gunned down in cold blood. Though the streets are relatively empty at the time of the crime, desperate caged bird Evelyn was dining with her controlling husband Harri at the time, and the pair is quickly swept up in the ensuing investigation. Despite her obvious wealth, Evelyn is deeply unhappy in her marriage and Harri is a secretive police officer with plenty to hide. Young Kristofer was in the vicinity at the time of the shooting as well, and along with Älis soon becomes one of the prime suspects. But when no one is telling the truth, how do the authorities distinguish the guilty from the innocent. As the plot grows ever more labyrinthine, the viewer is offered a telling glimpse into a society that has become increasingly westernized over the years, yet still remains trapped in a tragic cycle of corruption and greed.