Guardian of the Frontier (Varuh Meje) is the dreamy debut film from Slovenian director Maja Weiss. Shot in the picturesque forested outskirts of Slovenia, Guardian focuses on the relationships of three young female students as they live the good life on their summer vacation. Stressed out from their studies (and parents), Alja, Zana and Simona decide to spend their time canoeing down the Kolpa river and camping in the surrounding woods. The trip begins innocently enough, with some wild outbursts of singing and even a little topless conoeing action. Things start to go awry after Simona gets separated from the others and stumbles upon a lone fisherman in the middle of the river.

From this point the movie takes on a more serious tone, as the girls find themselves in increasingly unfamiliar circumstances. Simona is haunted by visions of the "King of the Forest", while the sexual tensions between Zana and Alja escalate into a full-blown affair. The relationships between the three girls start to deteriorate, as they find themselves in hostile surroundings on the Croatian side of the river with the mysterious King of the Forest hounding their every step. Referred to as a "female Deliverance" by the festival program, Guardian of the Frontier combines the best elements of lost-in-the-woods thrills with a creepy, uncomfortable atmosphere and a healthy dose of "grrrl power". There are a few dream-like sequences in the vein of David Lynch that left me scratching my head just a bit, but these added just the right amount of weirdness and charm to the film.

We're treated to some surprisingly good performances from the female leads in Guardian, and the audience quickly develops an affection for them in spite of the language barrier. Especially enjoyable is the performance of Iva Krajnc, who portrays the naive (and infectiously cute) Simona quite well. The ladies get tastefully nekkid on several occasions, giving a few giddy thrills to dudes and gay ladies alike. (Indeed, the audience was mostly lesbian couples; hey, they've got good taste!) Slovenias' most popular TV host Jonas Znidarsic also contributes a suitably creepy performance as the antagonistic King of the Forest. Thanks to the strong acting, the film remains compelling for most of its 98 minute running time, and there are enough twists to keep things fresh throughout.

Guardian of the Frontier is a polished and well-made film, especially when you consider that it's a debut. While it may have more worldwide appeal than other foreign films, the distinct flavor of the film may lose a few viewers with the language barrier and some scenes discussing Slovenia-Croatia politics. Of course I had no problem with those aspects of the film, and overall I enjoyed it very much. I recommend it to anyone looking for something a little bit off the beaten path. The nubile, naked girls are simply icing on the cake.

Thumbs up.