The Patriot

You can never shake off your native country. That is why Milena Boudinova, who lives in the Netherlands, tries for one summer to find reasons to return to Bulgaria, like many of her Bulgarian compeers do. She speaks with King Simeon II, who appears to be homesick for Spain, where he lived in exile. She talks to the young and self-assured minister Milena Velchev (32), who swapped his career in London for a government seat. She follows the struggle of violinist Dorina, who came back from America, but cannot find her niche in Bulgaria. She meets Jordan, who has returned form Holland to build a more dignified life in his fatherland. “You can’t for very long live a life that isn’t worth describing.” With a great sense for detail, Boudinova shows the daily life in Bulgaria and conveys he splits that every emigrant ultimately has to make.