Kuandyk and Saltanat leave their remote hometown village to move to the city. Saltanat’s family is pestered by debt, and she comes to a crossroad where she must make a decision. She must decide whether to live as a wealthy businessman’s live-in girlfriend or continue to suffer under her mother’s debts. Kuandyk, who loves her, works as a manual laborer in an attempt to pay off Saltanat’s family debt, but he finds it impossible to do so in the unfamiliar surroundings of the city. At this point, it becomes clear in this post-Soviet film that there still exists a contrast between the countryside and the city. The cruel ways of the city try to muddy the innocence of these two lovers, but they are not swayed. Instead, they confront the city in an extreme fashion. Director Adikhan Yerzhanov continues to throw a critical and reflective view on modern day Kazakhstan. (Hong Sangwoo)