Crush My Heart

Together with other Slovak Roma, the fun-loving teenager Pepe lives in Vienna under the supervision of his despotic uncle Rocky. To earn money for his mother and sisters in eastern Slovakia, Pepe goes begging day after day. Despite the harshness of his daily life, Pepe seems resigned to his living situation. However, that changes when Marcela, who is the same age, joins him to work off her father's debt to Rocky. The two teenagers fall in love and dream of a free, self-determined life in which they can live out their love freely. But they haven't reckoned with Rocky, who has his own plans for Marcela.

"Poetic realism, the likes of which are rarely seen in Austrian cinema."

DER STANDARD