Parallel section devoted to first and second features and shorts by emerging filmmakers will announce selection on June 7.
Romanian director Cristian Mungiu will be the jury president for the 60th edition of Cannes Critics’ Week, which runs July 7-15.
Jury members will comprise French producer Didar Domehri, whose recent credits include Under The Stars Of Paris and Memory House; actress and music artist Camélia Jordana, who was seen recently in Love Affair)s); Swiss, Monaco-based film consultant Michel Merkt, whose recent credits include Benedetta, and Karel Och, artistic director of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Mungiu has a long...
Romanian director Cristian Mungiu will be the jury president for the 60th edition of Cannes Critics’ Week, which runs July 7-15.
Jury members will comprise French producer Didar Domehri, whose recent credits include Under The Stars Of Paris and Memory House; actress and music artist Camélia Jordana, who was seen recently in Love Affair)s); Swiss, Monaco-based film consultant Michel Merkt, whose recent credits include Benedetta, and Karel Och, artistic director of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Mungiu has a long...
- 6/2/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Romanian director Cristian Mungiu, a Cannes Palme d’Or winner for 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days (2007) will chair this year’s jury for Cannes Critics’ Week.
Mungiu’s career has been closely tied to Cannes. His first feature, Occident, premiered in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight sidebar in 2002 before his follow-up, the Ceaușescu-era abortion drama 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, took the festival’s top prize in 2007. He won Cannes’ best screenplay honor in 2012 for Beyond the Hills, which also picked up a double award for best actress for the film’s leads Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur. In 2016, he won ...
Mungiu’s career has been closely tied to Cannes. His first feature, Occident, premiered in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight sidebar in 2002 before his follow-up, the Ceaușescu-era abortion drama 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, took the festival’s top prize in 2007. He won Cannes’ best screenplay honor in 2012 for Beyond the Hills, which also picked up a double award for best actress for the film’s leads Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur. In 2016, he won ...
Romanian director Cristian Mungiu, a Cannes Palme d’Or winner for 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days (2007) will chair this year’s jury for Cannes Critics’ Week.
Mungiu’s career has been closely tied to Cannes. His first feature, Occident, premiered in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight sidebar in 2002 before his follow-up, the Ceaușescu-era abortion drama 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, took the festival’s top prize in 2007. He won Cannes’ best screenplay honor in 2012 for Beyond the Hills, which also picked up a double award for best actress for the film’s leads Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur. In 2016, he won ...
Mungiu’s career has been closely tied to Cannes. His first feature, Occident, premiered in Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight sidebar in 2002 before his follow-up, the Ceaușescu-era abortion drama 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, took the festival’s top prize in 2007. He won Cannes’ best screenplay honor in 2012 for Beyond the Hills, which also picked up a double award for best actress for the film’s leads Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur. In 2016, he won ...
Hard-hitting film is inspired by real-life scandal about life-threatening hygiene standards in Romanian hospitals.
Paris-based Indie Sales has acquired world rights to emerging Romanian filmmakers Gabi Virginia Sarga and Catalin Rotaru’s debut feature Thou Shalt Not Kill, ahead of its premiere at Warsaw Film Festival (Oct 12-21).
The film is inspired by a real-life scandal in Romania about terrible hygiene standards in the country’s hospitals and the use of substandard, diluted disinfectants to clean operating surgeries.
Rising Romanian actor Alexandru Suciu stars as a young surgeon who starts a solitary fight against a corrupted system after the sudden...
Paris-based Indie Sales has acquired world rights to emerging Romanian filmmakers Gabi Virginia Sarga and Catalin Rotaru’s debut feature Thou Shalt Not Kill, ahead of its premiere at Warsaw Film Festival (Oct 12-21).
The film is inspired by a real-life scandal in Romania about terrible hygiene standards in the country’s hospitals and the use of substandard, diluted disinfectants to clean operating surgeries.
Rising Romanian actor Alexandru Suciu stars as a young surgeon who starts a solitary fight against a corrupted system after the sudden...
- 9/26/2018
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
May is going to be a good month for fans of the Romanian New Wave, as Cristian Mungiu’s two most recent films are both joining the Criterion Collection. “Graduation” and “Beyond the Hills” will be released alongside new additions “Midnight Cowboy,” “The Other Side of Hope,” and “Moonrise”; “Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters” and “Au hasard Balthazar,” which have already been released on DVD, are getting Blu-ray upgrades.
“Au hasard Balthazar”
“A profound masterpiece from one of the most revered filmmakers in the history of cinema, director Robert Bresson’s ‘Au hasard Balthazar’ follows the donkey Balthazar as he is passed from owner to owner, some kind and some cruel but all with motivations outside of his understanding. Balthazar, whose life parallels that of his first keeper, Marie, is truly a beast of burden, suffering the sins of humankind. But despite his powerlessness, he accepts his fate nobly.
“Au hasard Balthazar”
“A profound masterpiece from one of the most revered filmmakers in the history of cinema, director Robert Bresson’s ‘Au hasard Balthazar’ follows the donkey Balthazar as he is passed from owner to owner, some kind and some cruel but all with motivations outside of his understanding. Balthazar, whose life parallels that of his first keeper, Marie, is truly a beast of burden, suffering the sins of humankind. But despite his powerlessness, he accepts his fate nobly.
- 2/16/2018
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
Academy Nominated and Berlin Golden Bear Winner (Bal/ Honey), Director Semih Kaplanoğlu’s new feature, Grain (Isa: The Match Factory), starring Cristina Flutur, Jean-Marc Barr and Ermin Bravo will have its world premiere in the competition program at the Sarajevo Film Festival August 11–18.
Watch the trailer here.
Besides the screening of Grain costarring Ermin Bravo, Bravo is also starring in another screening at the Sarajevo Film Festival, Men Don’t Cry, directed by Alen Drljevic. This film won just the Special Jury Prize at Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Sarajevo Film Festival Competition Red CarpetErmin Bravo
Watch the trailer of Men Don’t Cry here.
Jean-Marc Barr is known for Lars van Trier’s films Dogville, Breaking the Waves, Nymphomaniac, and Europa. He has also just finished shooting for Cellar, directed by Igor Voloshin.
Jean-Marc Barr
Cristina Flutur is best-known for playing Alina in the movie Beyond the Hills (2012), directed...
Watch the trailer here.
Besides the screening of Grain costarring Ermin Bravo, Bravo is also starring in another screening at the Sarajevo Film Festival, Men Don’t Cry, directed by Alen Drljevic. This film won just the Special Jury Prize at Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Sarajevo Film Festival Competition Red CarpetErmin Bravo
Watch the trailer of Men Don’t Cry here.
Jean-Marc Barr is known for Lars van Trier’s films Dogville, Breaking the Waves, Nymphomaniac, and Europa. He has also just finished shooting for Cellar, directed by Igor Voloshin.
Jean-Marc Barr
Cristina Flutur is best-known for playing Alina in the movie Beyond the Hills (2012), directed...
- 8/2/2017
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Cristian Mungiu on Cannes Artistic Director Thierry Frémaux: "The only thing he has doubts about is that it's too clear who throws the stone."
Scenes of delicate opacity haunt Graduation (Bacalaureat). At a police lineup, one of the suspects of an assault is hidden from our view by the back of the head of Eliza, the victim (Maria-Victoria Dragus). From a bus, her father Romeo (Adrian Titieni) sees someone and follows that specter into the night and crosses over to a neighborhood soaked in sounds of invisible people and dogs. In a scene of real horror, Eliza's boyfriend Marius (Rares Andrici) shows himself willing to go a step further.
Maria-Victoria Dragus as Romeo's daughter Eliza
Cristian Mungiu is a Cannes Film Festival favourite - Palme d'Or win for 4 Months, 3 Weeks And 2 Days; Best Screenplay for Beyond The Hills and Best Actress honors to Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan, and...
Scenes of delicate opacity haunt Graduation (Bacalaureat). At a police lineup, one of the suspects of an assault is hidden from our view by the back of the head of Eliza, the victim (Maria-Victoria Dragus). From a bus, her father Romeo (Adrian Titieni) sees someone and follows that specter into the night and crosses over to a neighborhood soaked in sounds of invisible people and dogs. In a scene of real horror, Eliza's boyfriend Marius (Rares Andrici) shows himself willing to go a step further.
Maria-Victoria Dragus as Romeo's daughter Eliza
Cristian Mungiu is a Cannes Film Festival favourite - Palme d'Or win for 4 Months, 3 Weeks And 2 Days; Best Screenplay for Beyond The Hills and Best Actress honors to Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan, and...
- 3/28/2017
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Graduation (Bacalaureat) director Cristian Mungiu: "Everything in the film has a real level and a real explanation." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
The director of Beyond The Hills, starring Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan, and Cannes Palme d'Or winner for 4 Months, 3 Weeks And 2 Days, explored his latest film with me when we met for a conversation at the 54th New York Film Festival. Graduation (Bacalaureat), co-produced by Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne, had its World Premiere at the Cannes Film Festival where he shared Best Director honors with Olivier Assayas.
Romeo (Adrian Titieni), a doctor in the hospital of a provincial town wishes nothing more urgently than for his daughter Eliza (Maria-Victoria Dragus) to be awarded a scholarship to Cambridge so that she can leave for "civilised" England. All Eliza has to do, is pass the graduation exams with her usual, excellent grades.
Marius (Rares Andrici), Eliza (Maria-Victoria Dragus) and Romeo...
The director of Beyond The Hills, starring Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan, and Cannes Palme d'Or winner for 4 Months, 3 Weeks And 2 Days, explored his latest film with me when we met for a conversation at the 54th New York Film Festival. Graduation (Bacalaureat), co-produced by Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne, had its World Premiere at the Cannes Film Festival where he shared Best Director honors with Olivier Assayas.
Romeo (Adrian Titieni), a doctor in the hospital of a provincial town wishes nothing more urgently than for his daughter Eliza (Maria-Victoria Dragus) to be awarded a scholarship to Cambridge so that she can leave for "civilised" England. All Eliza has to do, is pass the graduation exams with her usual, excellent grades.
Marius (Rares Andrici), Eliza (Maria-Victoria Dragus) and Romeo...
- 2/13/2017
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
As Cannes approaches, Screen casts its eye back at the winners and losers of 2012 according to our jury of critics.
Screen International’s jury of international critics has long been a strong indicator as to what will take the top prizes at the Cannes Film Festival – and 2012 was no different.
Sharing the Jury Grid’s top spot in 2012 were Cristian Mungiu’s Romanian drama Beyond the Hills and Michael Haneke’s heart-breaking Amour.
Both films scored 3.3 out of 4 and Amour went away with the festival’s coveted Palme d’Or.
Amour was Haneke’s second film to win the Cannes top prize, after 2009’s chilling pre-war drama The White Ribbon.
Beyond the Hills also performed strongly, winning awards for best screenplay and best actress for its two leading ladies Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan. Director Mungiu has another shot at the Palme d’Or this year with Graduation (Bacalaureat).
Tie-breaker
It was a year for ties, with...
Screen International’s jury of international critics has long been a strong indicator as to what will take the top prizes at the Cannes Film Festival – and 2012 was no different.
Sharing the Jury Grid’s top spot in 2012 were Cristian Mungiu’s Romanian drama Beyond the Hills and Michael Haneke’s heart-breaking Amour.
Both films scored 3.3 out of 4 and Amour went away with the festival’s coveted Palme d’Or.
Amour was Haneke’s second film to win the Cannes top prize, after 2009’s chilling pre-war drama The White Ribbon.
Beyond the Hills also performed strongly, winning awards for best screenplay and best actress for its two leading ladies Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan. Director Mungiu has another shot at the Palme d’Or this year with Graduation (Bacalaureat).
Tie-breaker
It was a year for ties, with...
- 5/5/2016
- ScreenDaily
What makes films about religion so interesting is the way some manage to tread a line between support and criticism, while some are vehemently anti-religion or pro-religion. When all is said and done, it’s up to the audience to decide whether or not the film (or the faith portrayed) is a respectful or perceptive study on faith and the dogmatic principles that may or may not surround it. Not every religious film is uplifting. In fact, there are plenty of non-religious films that do a better job of building viewers’ faith. But that’s another list for another time.
30. Beyond the Hills (2012)
Directed by Cristian Mingiu
Five years after his punishing 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, Christian Mingiu delivered an interesting look at a lifelong friendship formed at an orphanage. Beyond the Hills tells the story of two women, based on non-fiction novels by Tatiana Niculescu Bran: Alina (Cristina Flutur) has fled to Germany,...
30. Beyond the Hills (2012)
Directed by Cristian Mingiu
Five years after his punishing 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, Christian Mingiu delivered an interesting look at a lifelong friendship formed at an orphanage. Beyond the Hills tells the story of two women, based on non-fiction novels by Tatiana Niculescu Bran: Alina (Cristina Flutur) has fled to Germany,...
- 4/7/2014
- by Joshua Gaul
- SoundOnSight
Adèle Exarchopoulos (‘Blue Is the Warmest Color’) and Cate Blanchett (‘Blue Jasmine’): Best Actress tie two years in a row at Los Angeles Film Critics Awards (photo: Léa Seydoux and Adèle Exarchopoulos in ‘Blue Is the Warmest Color’) (See previous post: "James Franco Tattoos, Gold Teeth: Lafca Winners." Another non-Hollywood Los Angeles Film Critics Association’s selection was Best Actress co-winner Adèle Exarchopoulos, cited for her performance as a young woman who falls in love with blue-haired Léa Seydoux in Abdellatif Kechiche’s controversial Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or winner Blue Is the Warmest Color. The lesbian romantic drama also took home the Lafca’s Best Foreign Language Film Award. Blue was also the luckiest color, at least in the Best Actress category: Cate Blanchett was Exarchopoulos’ co-winner, for her performance in Woody Allen’s Blue Jasmine, in which she plays a character somewhat similar to A Streetcar Named Desire...
- 12/9/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Los Angeles Film Critics Awards winners 2013 (photo: Sandra Bullock in ‘Gravity’) The Los Angeles Film Critics Association (Lafca), which has been around since the early ’70s, announced earlier today, December 8, 2013, their list of 2013 winners and runners-up. Although there were a handful of offbeat choices, what’s most surprising is how mainstream were most of the Los Angeles Film Critics’ picks this year — Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity was the top film, with a total of four wins — and that there were no less than three ties, including one for Best Picture: Gravity and Spike Jonze’s Her. See below. (See also: Full list of Boston Society of Film Critics 2013 winners.) Best Picture (tie): Gravity and Her. Best Foreign-Language Film: Blue Is the Warmest Color, directed by Abdellatif Kechiche. Runner-up: The Great Beauty, directed by Paolo Sorrentino. Best Documentary: Stories We Tell, directed by Sarah Polley Runner-up: The Act of Killing,...
- 12/8/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
No; Beyond the Hills; Warm Bodies; Beautiful Creatures; Hitchcock; To the Wonder
A gripping combination of political history and personal intrigue, Pablo Larraín's No (2012, Network, 15) dramatically recounts the campaign to remove General Pinochet from power during the 1988 Chilean referendum. Based on a stage play by Antonio Skármeta, the action centres on René Saavedra (Gael García Bernal), an advertising executive enlisted to sell the "No" campaign to a nation with the slogan "Happiness is coming", to the displeasure of the hard-line politicos who believe he's belittling their cause.
The completion of a thematic trilogy (following Tony Manero and Post Mortem), No benefits from Larraín's bold use of boxy, grainy U-matic video stock, which enables him to blend latterday recreations with authentic archival TV footage. The result is a seamless mix of fact and fiction, brought together through a unifying aesthetic in which the medium perfectly fits the message.
At times...
A gripping combination of political history and personal intrigue, Pablo Larraín's No (2012, Network, 15) dramatically recounts the campaign to remove General Pinochet from power during the 1988 Chilean referendum. Based on a stage play by Antonio Skármeta, the action centres on René Saavedra (Gael García Bernal), an advertising executive enlisted to sell the "No" campaign to a nation with the slogan "Happiness is coming", to the displeasure of the hard-line politicos who believe he's belittling their cause.
The completion of a thematic trilogy (following Tony Manero and Post Mortem), No benefits from Larraín's bold use of boxy, grainy U-matic video stock, which enables him to blend latterday recreations with authentic archival TV footage. The result is a seamless mix of fact and fiction, brought together through a unifying aesthetic in which the medium perfectly fits the message.
At times...
- 6/15/2013
- by Mark Kermode
- The Guardian - Film News
★★★★☆ It's been a remarkable decade for Romanian cinema. While Cristi Puiu and Corneliu Porumboiu both delivered impressive works with The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (2005) and Police, Adjective (2009) respectively, it was arguably Cristian Mungiu's 2007 Palme d'Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days that crystallised the movement and defined the Romanian New Wave. The shadow of Nicolae Ceausescu and brutal communist regime is still a key thematic concern for Mungiu but, with Beyond the Hills (2012), he pushes it to the background, focusing his steely gaze on the lost souls struggling to find purpose in new Romania.
Based on two non-fiction books by Tatiana Niculescu, Beyond the Hills follows Alina (Cristina Flutur) as she returns to her hometown to take her childhood friend Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) back to Germany with her. Both women grew up at the same orphanage, where they forged a strong, ambiguous connection. But, while Alina has been away, Voichita has...
Based on two non-fiction books by Tatiana Niculescu, Beyond the Hills follows Alina (Cristina Flutur) as she returns to her hometown to take her childhood friend Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) back to Germany with her. Both women grew up at the same orphanage, where they forged a strong, ambiguous connection. But, while Alina has been away, Voichita has...
- 6/12/2013
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
Cannes Film Festival awards: 2013 winners (image: Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, 2013 Cannes Film Festival poster) The 2013 Cannes Film Festival came to a close on Sunday evening. Abdellatif Kechiche’s Blue Is the Warmest Color, about the love affair between a woman in her 20s and another in her teens, took home the Palme d’Or. Palme d’Or: Blue Is the Warmest Color / La Vie d’Adèle by Abdellatif Kechiche (Note: the jury made a point of giving the Palme d’Or to Kechiche and the film’s two leading ladies, Adèle Exarchopoulos and Léa Seydoux) Grand Prix: Inside Llewyn Davies by Joel and Ethan Coen Jury Prize: Like Father, Like Son by Kore-eda Hirokazu Best Director: Amat Escalante for Heli Best Actress: Bérénice Bejo for Asghar Farhadi’s The Past / Le Passé Best Actor: Bruce Dern for Alexander Payne’s Nebraska Best Screenplay: Jia Zhangke for A Touch of...
- 5/26/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Beyond The Hills is a slow-paced but unnerving movie based on real events that occurred in Romania a decade ago. It’s not a horror film but imagine if Ingmar Bergman had directed The Exorcist and you might get a handle on its tone. There are no spinning heads or levitation but what is most scary about Beyond The Hills is the knowledge that it really happened. It’s an unsubtle indictment of the backwardness of the Eastern Orthodox Catholic Church but like many good films, there is more than one way to read the story and the religious and personal experiences of the viewer may shape that interpretation.
The setting for Beyond The Hills is a monastery in a remote Romania mountain village to which twenty-something Alina (Cristina Flutur) has travelled to visit her childhood friend Voichita (Cosmina Stratan). The two grew up in an orphanage together but Alina...
The setting for Beyond The Hills is a monastery in a remote Romania mountain village to which twenty-something Alina (Cristina Flutur) has travelled to visit her childhood friend Voichita (Cosmina Stratan). The two grew up in an orphanage together but Alina...
- 4/5/2013
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Beyond the Hills
Directed by Cristian Mungiu
Written by Cristian Mungiu
Romania, 2012
Dreadful anticipation, the kind that most mainstream horror films strive for and fail to achieve, permeates every second of Beyond the Hills, a new film from Romanian writer-director Cristian Mungiu. The film, a patient, uneasy drama about the nature and presence of evil set against the backdrop of a small Romanian monastery and its newest member, grows more and more disturbing as its players go to the extremes to banish out the perceived other from their would-be purified community. Though Beyond the Hills has a too-slow first act, on the whole, the film is quietly devastating.
Cosmina Stratan plays Voichiţa, a young woman ensconced in that monastery since leaving an orphanage where she spent her childhood. As Beyond the Hills opens, she picks up her old friend from the orphanage, Alina (Cristina Flutur), so they can live out...
Directed by Cristian Mungiu
Written by Cristian Mungiu
Romania, 2012
Dreadful anticipation, the kind that most mainstream horror films strive for and fail to achieve, permeates every second of Beyond the Hills, a new film from Romanian writer-director Cristian Mungiu. The film, a patient, uneasy drama about the nature and presence of evil set against the backdrop of a small Romanian monastery and its newest member, grows more and more disturbing as its players go to the extremes to banish out the perceived other from their would-be purified community. Though Beyond the Hills has a too-slow first act, on the whole, the film is quietly devastating.
Cosmina Stratan plays Voichiţa, a young woman ensconced in that monastery since leaving an orphanage where she spent her childhood. As Beyond the Hills opens, she picks up her old friend from the orphanage, Alina (Cristina Flutur), so they can live out...
- 4/5/2013
- by Josh Spiegel
- SoundOnSight
Cristian Mungiu's prize-winning film is a powerful and sombre meditation on faith and friendship in present-day Romania
Eight years ago the appearance of Cristi Puiu's The Death of Mr Lazarescu, a stoical, grimly funny story about the ghastly legacy of the Ceausescu regime, won a major prize at Cannes. It was soon followed by Cristian Mungiu's 4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days, which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes and seemed to confirm that something remarkable was happening in the Romanian cinema. Now, after a longish wait, Mungiu has made another feature, Beyond the Hills, a painful and exacting picture that confirms his position as a film-maker of the first rank.
4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days was set during a single wintry afternoon and evening in 1987 during the rule of Ceausescu and centres around two female students sharing a room in a bleak university dormitory. One is blond, honest, self-sacrificing, the other dark-haired,...
Eight years ago the appearance of Cristi Puiu's The Death of Mr Lazarescu, a stoical, grimly funny story about the ghastly legacy of the Ceausescu regime, won a major prize at Cannes. It was soon followed by Cristian Mungiu's 4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days, which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes and seemed to confirm that something remarkable was happening in the Romanian cinema. Now, after a longish wait, Mungiu has made another feature, Beyond the Hills, a painful and exacting picture that confirms his position as a film-maker of the first rank.
4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days was set during a single wintry afternoon and evening in 1987 during the rule of Ceausescu and centres around two female students sharing a room in a bleak university dormitory. One is blond, honest, self-sacrificing, the other dark-haired,...
- 3/19/2013
- by Philip French
- The Guardian - Film News
Beyond The Hills | The Incredible Burt Wonderstone | The Paperboy | Welcome To The Punch | Shell | The Spirit Of '45 | Red Dawn | Vinyl | Maniac | Michael H. Profession: Director
Beyond The Hills (12A)
(Cristian Mungiu, 2012, Rom) Cosmina Stratan, Cristina Flutur. 152 mins
Romanian patriarchy had a lot to answer for in Mungiu's 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, and it's even more to blame in this powerful convent drama. It starts with a young woman coming to visit her former girlfriend, who's now a nun, but events increasingly spiral out of control, to the extent that romantic frustration is diagnosed as demonic possession… and duly treated.
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (15)
(Don Scardino, 2013, Us) Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Jim Carrey. 100 mins
Doing for Vegas-style magic what Blades Of Glory did for figure skating, Carell and co conjure just enough comedy out of a sitting-duck premise, as their cheesy stage act is threatened by Carrey's Blaine-style endurance stunts.
The Paperboy (15)
(Lee Daniels,...
Beyond The Hills (12A)
(Cristian Mungiu, 2012, Rom) Cosmina Stratan, Cristina Flutur. 152 mins
Romanian patriarchy had a lot to answer for in Mungiu's 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days, and it's even more to blame in this powerful convent drama. It starts with a young woman coming to visit her former girlfriend, who's now a nun, but events increasingly spiral out of control, to the extent that romantic frustration is diagnosed as demonic possession… and duly treated.
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (15)
(Don Scardino, 2013, Us) Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Jim Carrey. 100 mins
Doing for Vegas-style magic what Blades Of Glory did for figure skating, Carell and co conjure just enough comedy out of a sitting-duck premise, as their cheesy stage act is threatened by Carrey's Blaine-style endurance stunts.
The Paperboy (15)
(Lee Daniels,...
- 3/16/2013
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
Stalemate: Mungiu follows up Palme d’Or Winner with Intense Religious Stand-off
Five years have passed since Romanian director Cristian Mungiu’s critically acclaimed 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days hoisted Romania into the World Cinema Big Leagues by winning the coveted Palme d’Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. Winner of the Best Screenplay and Best Actress ex aequo for both lead performances of Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan, Beyond the Hills is a heightening of that style to its most intense and harrowing essence – one that has proven to be one of the most divisive films from the so-called Romanian New Wave yet.
Based on a real-life incident, Mungiu’s latest follows a lone young woman into a remote monastery to find her childhood friend and to resettle in Romania. The film opens with a tearful reunion of the two women when Alina (Cristina Flutur) returns from working in Germany.
Five years have passed since Romanian director Cristian Mungiu’s critically acclaimed 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days hoisted Romania into the World Cinema Big Leagues by winning the coveted Palme d’Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. Winner of the Best Screenplay and Best Actress ex aequo for both lead performances of Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan, Beyond the Hills is a heightening of that style to its most intense and harrowing essence – one that has proven to be one of the most divisive films from the so-called Romanian New Wave yet.
Based on a real-life incident, Mungiu’s latest follows a lone young woman into a remote monastery to find her childhood friend and to resettle in Romania. The film opens with a tearful reunion of the two women when Alina (Cristina Flutur) returns from working in Germany.
- 3/15/2013
- by Moen Mohamed
- IONCINEMA.com
Beyond the Hills
Directed by: Cristian Mungiu
Cast: Cosmina Stratan, Cristina Flutur, Doru Ana
Running Time: 2 hrs 30 mins
Rating: Nr
Release Date: March 15, 2013 (Chicago)
Plot: A nun (Stratan) reunites with her friend (Flutur) from a past orphanage, and invites her to stay at the convent, with troublesome results.
Who’S It For? With its pacing and subject matter, this is for people ready for some lengthy cold European drama.
Overall
Beyond the Hills is an emotionally frost-bitten movie of hushed voices and the constant visual of seeing the back of someone’s head, (even though they’re talking) which is a thoughtful cocktail that makes for a compelling image in the beginning. But, this all eventually becomes incredibly starchy as the movie refuses to pick up its pace. Even the performances, which chime better toward the third act when they are put to more constructive purposes, become tired as characters hardly evolve.
Directed by: Cristian Mungiu
Cast: Cosmina Stratan, Cristina Flutur, Doru Ana
Running Time: 2 hrs 30 mins
Rating: Nr
Release Date: March 15, 2013 (Chicago)
Plot: A nun (Stratan) reunites with her friend (Flutur) from a past orphanage, and invites her to stay at the convent, with troublesome results.
Who’S It For? With its pacing and subject matter, this is for people ready for some lengthy cold European drama.
Overall
Beyond the Hills is an emotionally frost-bitten movie of hushed voices and the constant visual of seeing the back of someone’s head, (even though they’re talking) which is a thoughtful cocktail that makes for a compelling image in the beginning. But, this all eventually becomes incredibly starchy as the movie refuses to pick up its pace. Even the performances, which chime better toward the third act when they are put to more constructive purposes, become tired as characters hardly evolve.
- 3/15/2013
- by Nick Allen
- The Scorecard Review
The chilling story of an exorcism in a Romanian monastery is the backdrop for an anatomy of an exhausted, bewildered society
Cristian Mungiu's eerie drama about two young women in a Romanian monastery – based on the true story from 2005 of a novice being subjected to an exorcism – has arrived in the UK. It is chilling, bizarre and mysterious: a social realist, or maybe social real-time-ist depiction of an unfolding catastrophe stemming from sexual and emotional frustration, irrationality, poverty and fear in the dark heart of central Europe. For me, a repeat viewing refocused the attention and the blame. What seems important a second time is not the authoritarianism and group hysteria of the monastery, but rather the hospital which, through pure bureaucratic weari-ness or inter-institutional complicity, releases a disturbed young woman into the nuns' care. Bewildered, befuddled Romanian society in general is what is culpable: a directionless, hopeless world.
Cristian Mungiu's eerie drama about two young women in a Romanian monastery – based on the true story from 2005 of a novice being subjected to an exorcism – has arrived in the UK. It is chilling, bizarre and mysterious: a social realist, or maybe social real-time-ist depiction of an unfolding catastrophe stemming from sexual and emotional frustration, irrationality, poverty and fear in the dark heart of central Europe. For me, a repeat viewing refocused the attention and the blame. What seems important a second time is not the authoritarianism and group hysteria of the monastery, but rather the hospital which, through pure bureaucratic weari-ness or inter-institutional complicity, releases a disturbed young woman into the nuns' care. Bewildered, befuddled Romanian society in general is what is culpable: a directionless, hopeless world.
- 3/15/2013
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Chicago – There is an excellent 90-minute film hidden somewhere within the two-and-a-half-hour ordeal that is Cristian Mungiu’s “Beyond the Hills.” It’s far from a bad film, and offers many sequences of entrancing power, but simply doesn’t have enough material to justify its sprawling running time. Instead of probing deeper, the picture merely becomes repetitive.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
There’s also a dour sense of inevitability that overtakes the suspense at about the one-hour mark. The final outcome is obvious long before it arrives onscreen, and the same could be said of Mungiu’s previous effort, 2007’s Palme d’Or winner, “4 Months, 3 Weeks and Days.” Yet whereas that brilliant film was fueled by its often excruciating tension, “Hills” unfolds with a ponderously cynical logic. Though Mungiu’s work has brought tremendous global attention to the Romanian film industry, neither film will do the country’s tourism market any favors.
Read...
Rating: 3.5/5.0
There’s also a dour sense of inevitability that overtakes the suspense at about the one-hour mark. The final outcome is obvious long before it arrives onscreen, and the same could be said of Mungiu’s previous effort, 2007’s Palme d’Or winner, “4 Months, 3 Weeks and Days.” Yet whereas that brilliant film was fueled by its often excruciating tension, “Hills” unfolds with a ponderously cynical logic. Though Mungiu’s work has brought tremendous global attention to the Romanian film industry, neither film will do the country’s tourism market any favors.
Read...
- 3/14/2013
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Why They're On Our Radar: Many heads were turned following the announcement of last May's Cannes Film Festival winner for Best Actress where, despite the long list of veteran and established actresses many felt certain would take the prize, the award went to not one, but two actresses who have never before appeared in a film. Cosmina Stratan was working as a TV and print journalist when she came under consideration for one of the leads in Cristian Mungiu's new film "Beyond the Hills," while Cristina Flutur worked as a classical theater actress. Neither worked in film before and suddenly their lives have turned into a whirlwind of press, news, and awards. There was no doubt much anticipation for Mungiu's return to Cannes, as his last trip in 2007 for abortion drama "4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days" famously cemented Romanian's emergence as a major player in contemporary world cinema by taking home a Palme d'Or,...
- 3/14/2013
- by Eric Mattina
- Indiewire
Chicago – Five years after revitalizing the Romanian film industry with his 2007 Palme d’Or winner, “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days,” filmmaker Cristian Mungiu returned to the Cannes Film Festival with his eagerly awaited follow-up, “Beyond the Hills.” Mungiu won the screenplay prize while his leading ladies, newcomers Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur, each received acting accolades.
Art house audiences in Chicago will have the chance to catch Mungiu’s chilling drama when it opens Friday at the Landmark Century Centre Cinema. The fact-based tale centers on two old friends, Voichita (Stratan) and Alina (Flutur), who reconnect at an isolated monastery that appears to have been frozen in time. Though Alina expects her friend (and former lover) to leave with her, Voichita opts for a life of devout worship with the nuns rather than embrace mortal pleasures. Alina’s enraged acts of rebellion are interpreted by Voichita’s fellow nuns as demonic possession,...
Art house audiences in Chicago will have the chance to catch Mungiu’s chilling drama when it opens Friday at the Landmark Century Centre Cinema. The fact-based tale centers on two old friends, Voichita (Stratan) and Alina (Flutur), who reconnect at an isolated monastery that appears to have been frozen in time. Though Alina expects her friend (and former lover) to leave with her, Voichita opts for a life of devout worship with the nuns rather than embrace mortal pleasures. Alina’s enraged acts of rebellion are interpreted by Voichita’s fellow nuns as demonic possession,...
- 3/12/2013
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Tags: RomaniaBeyond the HillsCosmina StratanCristina FluturIMDb
Beyond the Hills has won several awards at international film festivals since it premiered in 2012, and now it is finally hitting theaters this month in limited cities. The Romanian film from director Cristian Mungiu follows a relationship between two young women who have known each other their entire lives. There is certainly more than a friendship to their involvement, though their relationships with God, the church, and society complicate things for them in the worst ways.
Cristina Flutur plays Alina, who returns to Romania from Germany where she spent five years after fleeing from her orphanage where she met and grew up beside Voichita (Cosmina Stratan). But Voichita has tried to forget their relationship, despite Alina's longing to return to the way they once were, and is now a nun. When she starts to remember what it was like to share what she had with Alina,...
Beyond the Hills has won several awards at international film festivals since it premiered in 2012, and now it is finally hitting theaters this month in limited cities. The Romanian film from director Cristian Mungiu follows a relationship between two young women who have known each other their entire lives. There is certainly more than a friendship to their involvement, though their relationships with God, the church, and society complicate things for them in the worst ways.
Cristina Flutur plays Alina, who returns to Romania from Germany where she spent five years after fleeing from her orphanage where she met and grew up beside Voichita (Cosmina Stratan). But Voichita has tried to forget their relationship, despite Alina's longing to return to the way they once were, and is now a nun. When she starts to remember what it was like to share what she had with Alina,...
- 3/10/2013
- by trishbendix
- AfterEllen.com
Cristian Mungiu's brilliantly slow-to-burn "Beyond the Hills" (which people might start referring to as "the Romanian exorcism movie") opens this weekend, with critics appropriately impressed with the Cannes winner; leads Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan both won Best Actress at the fest last May. In the land of wide releases, Sam Raimi's overstuffed 3-D buffet "Oz the Great and Powerful" is getting middling reviews (Toh! liked it a tad better than the majority). Stylishly twisty Euro-pudding thriller "Dead Man Down," the first English-language film by "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" director Niels Arden Oplev, isn't getting much critical love, even though it's charmingly unpredictable thanks to a pleasing cast led by original Lisbeth Salander Noomi Rapace, Colin Farrell and Isabelle Huppert. "Electrick Children," Rebecca Thomas' coming-of-age tale about a devoutly religious girl who believes rock music has impregnated her, is getting good reviews, while World War II drama.
- 3/8/2013
- by Anne Thompson and Beth Hanna
- Thompson on Hollywood
Christian Mungiu, the leading figure of Romanian New Wave, strikes again with Beyond the Hills. Just like his Palme d'Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, which elevated a rather unpleasant subject matter (illegal abortion) into a dizzying, tension-filled masterpiece, here he manages to make something greater out of an exorcism-gone-horribly-wrong story based on a true event. Mungiu again proves to be a gifted storyteller and a great tension builder. He is also masterful at presenting nuanced human interactions. The film takes place in a small remote Romanian monastery in the hills. A young nun named Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) reunites with her childhood friend Alina (Cristina Flutur) from their orphanage days after a long separation. Alina, emotionally stunted of the two, having been...
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- 3/7/2013
- Screen Anarchy
Title: Beyond the Hills Director: Cristian Mungiu Starring: Cristina Flutur, Cosmina Stratan, Valeriu Andriuta Cristian Mungiu is the most well-known figure inside of the Romanian New Wave, and justifiably so. Mungiu is unwilling to compromise with the audience and even with himself, in spite of the subject matter being too difficult to talk about (let alone watch), and his ability to probe the minds and hearts of each and every character makes him a riveting director with enormous potential. In 2007, 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days was his second feature film that set Cannes ablaze with his powerful take on Romania’s abortion issue, ultimately winning the prestigious Palme [ Read More ]
The post Beyond the Hills Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post Beyond the Hills Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 3/7/2013
- by justin
- ShockYa
Can blind, unquestioning devout faith be just as corrupting as sin? Can love be as all consuming as evil? These are the big, broad themes being explored in Cristian Mungiu's deliberate and somewhat cryptic "Beyond The Hills," a very slow burn drama that finds both religious and emotional obsession crossing paths with tragic and haunting results. Set in an orthodox monastery in rural Romania, the film opens with Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) meeting her friend Alina (Cristina Flutur) at the train station, where the latter dissolves into a torrent of tears after they embrace. It has been a few years since they've seen each other at the orphanage where they were both raised, and after a stint working abroad in Germany, Alina has returned to reunite with Voichita so that they can start a new life together. But Voichita has found a new purpose as a nun at a monastery...
- 3/7/2013
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
“Beyond the Hills,” Cristian Mungiu’s shortlisted Oscar entry from Romania, is shot in gorgeous grey-gold widescreen. The film is set in the rural countryside, where a humble monastery dots the top of a sparse hill. When a stranger intrudes the monastery, and wreaks havoc on its order and indirectly on herself, the nature of belief systems is called into question. Voichita (Cosmina Stratan), a young nun living in the monastery, is visited by her friend Alina (Cristina Flutur), who has been working in Germany for the past several years. We learn that the two women knew each other while growing up in an orphanage. Alina has “been alone with her thoughts” too long in Germany, and is anxious to start a new life close to her old friend. Voichita is reluctant to leave the monastery, and instead attempts to bring the taciturn, physically awkward Alina into the religious fold.
- 3/6/2013
- by Beth Hanna
- Thompson on Hollywood
Chicago – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film with our unique social giveaway technology, we have 50 pairs of movie passes up for grabs to the advance screening of double Cannes Film Festival winner “Beyond the Hills” from the director of “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days”!
“Beyond the Hills,” which opens on March 15, 2013 in Chicago and is not rated, stars Cosmina Stratan, Cristina Flutur, Valeriu Andriuta, Dana Tapalaga, Catalina Harabagiu, Gina Tandura, Vica Agache, Nora Covali, Dionisie Vitcu and Ionut Ghinea from writer and director Cristian Mungiu. The film was inspired by the non-fiction novels by Tatiana Niculescu Bran.
To win your free “Beyond the Hills” passes courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, just get interactive with our unique Hookup technology below. That’s it! This screening is on Thursday, March 7, 2013 at 7 p.m. in Chicago. The more social actions you complete, the more points you score and the higher yours odds of winning!
“Beyond the Hills,” which opens on March 15, 2013 in Chicago and is not rated, stars Cosmina Stratan, Cristina Flutur, Valeriu Andriuta, Dana Tapalaga, Catalina Harabagiu, Gina Tandura, Vica Agache, Nora Covali, Dionisie Vitcu and Ionut Ghinea from writer and director Cristian Mungiu. The film was inspired by the non-fiction novels by Tatiana Niculescu Bran.
To win your free “Beyond the Hills” passes courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, just get interactive with our unique Hookup technology below. That’s it! This screening is on Thursday, March 7, 2013 at 7 p.m. in Chicago. The more social actions you complete, the more points you score and the higher yours odds of winning!
- 3/6/2013
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Beyond the Hills
Directed by Cristian Mungiu
Written by Cristian Mungiu
Romania, 2012
A thick air of mystery hangs over the proceedings of Beyond the Hills, Romanian director Cristian Mungiu’s highly anticipated follow-up to the excellent 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, a film which earned him the coveted Golden Palm at Cannes back in 2007. The focus this time shifts from the highly oppressive streets of 80’s Romania to a present day convent where faith and friendship are harshly tested between two friends. While most of Beyond the Hills registers as another formal wonder in the recent lineup of Romanian New Wave entries, Mungiu’s latest fails to live up to expectation as its thematic repetition overstays its welcome.
The film’s story is actually a fictionalized account of a similar incident that happened in Romania in 2005. It seems as though Mungiu has veered away from proper specifics, suffice it to say...
Directed by Cristian Mungiu
Written by Cristian Mungiu
Romania, 2012
A thick air of mystery hangs over the proceedings of Beyond the Hills, Romanian director Cristian Mungiu’s highly anticipated follow-up to the excellent 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, a film which earned him the coveted Golden Palm at Cannes back in 2007. The focus this time shifts from the highly oppressive streets of 80’s Romania to a present day convent where faith and friendship are harshly tested between two friends. While most of Beyond the Hills registers as another formal wonder in the recent lineup of Romanian New Wave entries, Mungiu’s latest fails to live up to expectation as its thematic repetition overstays its welcome.
The film’s story is actually a fictionalized account of a similar incident that happened in Romania in 2005. It seems as though Mungiu has veered away from proper specifics, suffice it to say...
- 3/6/2013
- by Ty Landis
- SoundOnSight
Stillness can be deceptive, and even among the hallowed and sacred grounds of an orthodox compound, that seemingly serene setting can have much more boiling beneath the surface. And in Cristian Mungiu's "Beyond The Hills" it's that unknowable factor that powers much of the drama in the film, which won awards for both its actresses at the Cannes Film Festival last year. Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan lead the film as Alina and Voichita, a pair of young women whose friendship in the orphanage where they were raised became something much more before their paths eventually diverged. However, when Alina comes to take Voichita out of a strictly orthodox religious compound where she now lives to restart the life they once shared, things move in unexpected directions. Faith and love are themes Mungiu explores in a variety of ways in the film, and so too is religion, and in...
- 3/5/2013
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
This month on VOD: A vampire romance from this year's SXSW lineup that marks the directorial debut of one of John Cassevetes' daughters, three standouts from last year's SXSW film festival that finally make their way onto VOD a full year after debuting in Austin, a documentary for all you "Shining" fans out there, and much more. "Beyond the Hills" (March 14) A foreign language film knockout, Cristian Mungiu's "Beyond The Hills" debuted at last year's Cannes Film Festival and won a joint prize for actresses Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan (beating out eventual Oscar nominee Emmanuelle Riva, no less). Inspired by Tatiana Niculescu Bran's novels, the film stars Flutur and Stratan as two young women at an Orthodox convent in Romania. Said Eric Kohn in his Cannes review: "Individual moments testify to the qualities that make contemporary Romanian cinema so incredibly involving -- the use of a slow-burn,...
- 3/4/2013
- by Indiewire Staff
- Indiewire
Title: Beyond The Hills (Dupa dealuri) Sundance Selects Director: Cristian Mungiu Screenwriter: Cristian Mungiu, Inspired by Tatiana Niculescu Bran’s nonfiction novels Cast: Cosmina Stratan, Cristina Flutur, Valeriu Andriuta, Dana Tapalaga Screened at: Review 1, NYC, 2/20/13 Opens: March 8, 2013 In the production notes, writer-director Cristian Mungiu states that his over-riding theme in creating “Beyond the Hills” is to show the indifference of Romanian society. Whereas the Eastern Orthodox Church, which is on display in perhaps its least flamboyant location and design, declares that there are 464 sins of which humankind may be guilty, the director’s belief that the greatest sin of all, that of indifference, is not even mentioned. [ Read More ]
The post Beyond the Hills Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post Beyond the Hills Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 2/21/2013
- by Harvey Karten
- ShockYa
Today's trailer is for a highly acclaimed Romanian thriller, the latest from the award-winning director of 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days. It's called Beyond the Hills, written and directed by Cristian Mungiu. One of the most interesting parts about this comes directly from the synopsis: "Beyond the Hills was inspired by an alleged case of demonic possession in Romania in 2005." But it's actually much more of a thrilling tale of friendship and love between two women at a convent in Romania, where one has arrived to coax the other to leave. This won the Best Actress(es) and Best Screenplay awards in Cannes after premiering there last year. Watch the official Us release trailer for Cristian Mungiu's Beyond the Hills, in high def from Apple: Alina (Cristina Flutur) goes to Romania from Germany, hoping to bring her friend Voichita (Cosmina Stratan)—the only person in the world she loves and...
- 2/17/2013
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
In just over a week, the Oscars will be over and we'll put 2012 to bed and start focusing on 2013. And while they probably won't get nominated for Oscars, we're willing to bet that Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan will deliver some of the best performances you'll see all year in "Beyond The Hills" (and indeed, they both shared an acting prize at the Cannes Film Festival last year). The latest trailer for Cristian Mungiu's film has arrived, and it's a powerful piece of work. The story centers on Alina (Flutur) and Voichita (Stratan), who both grew up in an orphange together and have a relationship that's a bit more than friends. Their paths eventually separate, and when Alina comes to take Voichita out of a strictly orthodox religious compound where she now lives, they both wind up facing forces bigger than they expected. All of Mungiu's trademark techniques are here,...
- 2/15/2013
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
The Romanian New Wave might not excite mainstream audiences much, but it's been gathering increasing fans among savvy arthouse audiences since the mid-'00s. Something of a benched player on the cultural circuit pre-2000, Romania has come firrmly onto the scene with festival domination and critical deference, and within this New World of indie sensations, Cristian Mungiu is, well, kind of a big deal. After the eye-watering "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days," which bagged Romania’s first Palme d’Or in 2007, the screenwriter and director was back in Cannes five years later to collect Best Screenplay and Best Actress Awards (shared jointly by Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan) for the follow-up, "Beyond the Hills," for which a teaser trailer has just been aired online. If the promo (and our Cannes review) is anything to go by, "Beyond the Hills," an account of exorcism in a rural Romanian community will track the plight of women.
- 2/1/2013
- by India Ross
- The Playlist
What's exciting about seeing new movies at festivals before critics get to them is making up your own mind, especially about films that are fashioned outside the box of what is deemed commercial or accessible to audiences. If you don't go to the first screening, though, you are subject to buzz--often a constantly repeated meme about a film that can be dangerous to hear because it may not predict your own experience of the film at all. A case in point is Cristian Mungiu's "Beyond the Hills" (March 8), which IFC picked up sight unseen before the Cannes Film Festival based on their prior relationship with the Romanian auteur's last feature, the Palme d'Or-winning "4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days." The meme? "Too long." But the Cannes jury rewarded the rare and glorious 35 mm "Beyond the Hills" with a shared Best Actress prize for its two non-pro actresses, Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur,...
- 1/31/2013
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
What makes the Oscar foreign language film category so special, though unfortunately less publicized than big ticket acting, directing, and best picture categories, is its gloriously wide range and inclusion of stories American moviegoers don’t usually get to see.
Whittled down from 71 films that qualified as official entries from countries all over the globe, the Oscar foreign film shortlist of nine movies announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Friday showcases different cultures, approaches and people, albeit with a general focus on Europeans.
Ranging from an already award-winning drama about an aging couple (Amour) to...
Whittled down from 71 films that qualified as official entries from countries all over the globe, the Oscar foreign film shortlist of nine movies announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Friday showcases different cultures, approaches and people, albeit with a general focus on Europeans.
Ranging from an already award-winning drama about an aging couple (Amour) to...
- 12/22/2012
- by Solvej Schou
- EW - Inside Movies
As part of an early look at next year’s Oscars, Prize Fighter — in an ongoing series — is highlighting several of the directors and official entries submitted by a whopping 71 countries competing for the Academy Award for best foreign language film.
Five years after his 2007 critically acclaimed beautiful and brutal feature about illegal abortion, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, failed to snag an Oscar nomination, prompting controversy, director Cristian Mungiu is back with another stark, hyper-realistic drama: Romania’s official 2013 foreign film Oscar entry Beyond the Hills.
“In a very strange way, 4 Months’ failure to be nominated in 2007 brought us a lot of notoriety,...
Five years after his 2007 critically acclaimed beautiful and brutal feature about illegal abortion, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, failed to snag an Oscar nomination, prompting controversy, director Cristian Mungiu is back with another stark, hyper-realistic drama: Romania’s official 2013 foreign film Oscar entry Beyond the Hills.
“In a very strange way, 4 Months’ failure to be nominated in 2007 brought us a lot of notoriety,...
- 12/14/2012
- by Solvej Schou
- EW - Inside Movies
Cosmina Stratan shared the best actress award at Cannes this year with her co-star Cristina Flutur for her portrayal of Voichita in Beyond The Hills - Romania's official entry for the 2013 Oscars - which tells the story of two friends against the backdrop of a convent. Cristian Mungiu's films teach you the art of seeing, while he unravels the common control mechanisms in front of our eyes. "You don't give details," Voichita explains. The girl is referring to confession, not moviemaking, which is as far off her diegetic reality as can be. "They say father has in icon," says Voichita, one that can grant wishes. Mungiu beautifully doubles the meaning.
Anne-Katrin Titze: You were filming in order. Did you feel in danger at the start, in between the trains?
Cosmina Stratan: I was anxious and felt the pressure because it was the first scene in the movie. It.
Anne-Katrin Titze: You were filming in order. Did you feel in danger at the start, in between the trains?
Cosmina Stratan: I was anxious and felt the pressure because it was the first scene in the movie. It.
- 12/12/2012
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Cristina Flutur shared the best actress award at Cannes this year with her costar Cosmina Stratan for her portrayal of Alina in Beyond The Hills, Cristian Mungiu's true expedition into the nature of indifference. Alina returns after having worked for two years in Germany and is taken in by Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) a nun living in a small orthodox convent, as a guest in her room, and the two women catch up on their different paths during the time they were apart, the way real people would, not the way movie expositions function.
Anne-Katrin Titze: Cristina, let's start with the beginning of the movie. You are crossing the train tracks right in front of the coming train and then you are crying and you already had me then. Not even five minutes in, and I was fully invested in Alina.
Cristina Flutur: I was very nervous because it was the first day.
Anne-Katrin Titze: Cristina, let's start with the beginning of the movie. You are crossing the train tracks right in front of the coming train and then you are crying and you already had me then. Not even five minutes in, and I was fully invested in Alina.
Cristina Flutur: I was very nervous because it was the first day.
- 12/7/2012
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Cristina Flutur shared the best actress award at Cannes this year with her costar Cosmina Stratan for her portrayal of Alina in Beyond The Hills, Cristian Mungiu's true expedition into the nature of indifference. Alina returns after having worked for two years in Germany and is taken in by Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) a nun living in a small orthodox convent, as a guest in her room, and the two women catch up on their different paths during the time they were apart, the way real people would, not the way movie expositions function.
Anne-Katrin Titze: Cristina, let's start with the beginning of the movie. You are crossing the train tracks right in front of the coming train and then you are crying and you already had me then. Not even five minutes in, and I was fully invested in Alina.
Cristina Flutur: I was very nervous because it was the first day.
Anne-Katrin Titze: Cristina, let's start with the beginning of the movie. You are crossing the train tracks right in front of the coming train and then you are crying and you already had me then. Not even five minutes in, and I was fully invested in Alina.
Cristina Flutur: I was very nervous because it was the first day.
- 12/7/2012
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Cristina Flutur with Anne-Katrin Titze Cristina Flutur shared the best actress award at Cannes this year with her costar Cosmina Stratan for her portrayal of Alina in Beyond The Hills, Cristian Mungiu's true expedition into the nature of indifference. Alina returns after having worked for two years in Germany and is taken in by Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) a nun living in a small orthodox convent, as a guest in her room, and the two women catch up on their different paths during the time they were apart, the way real people would, not the way movie expositions function.
Anne-Katrin Titze: Cristina, let's start with the beginning of the movie. You are crossing the train tracks right in front of the coming train and then you are crying and you already had me then. Not even five minutes in, and I was fully invested in Alina.
Cristina Flutur: I...
Anne-Katrin Titze: Cristina, let's start with the beginning of the movie. You are crossing the train tracks right in front of the coming train and then you are crying and you already had me then. Not even five minutes in, and I was fully invested in Alina.
Cristina Flutur: I...
- 12/7/2012
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Beyond the Hills
Directed by Cristian Mungiu
Romania, 2012
Philadelphia Film Festival
Cristian Mungiu’s first feature-film since the slow-burn Cannes winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, visits a similar “women in trouble” theme and replaces the big city with a rural village.
Alina (Cristina Flutur) and Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) grew up in an orphanage together. They’ve long since parted ways when Alina comes from Germany to visit Voichita at her small, isolated monastery and tries to convince her friend to leave with her. When Voichita refuses Alina doesn’t take her response too lightly.
Mungiu’s film feels as much like a prison break as a glimpse into Orthodox, ultra-devout monasticism. The lone priest (Valeriu Andriuta) is a silent jailer whose motives Alina frequently calls into question. Small wooden, windowed huts and frequent snowstorms make the place look more like Stalag 17 than The Bell’s of St. Mary’s.
Directed by Cristian Mungiu
Romania, 2012
Philadelphia Film Festival
Cristian Mungiu’s first feature-film since the slow-burn Cannes winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, visits a similar “women in trouble” theme and replaces the big city with a rural village.
Alina (Cristina Flutur) and Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) grew up in an orphanage together. They’ve long since parted ways when Alina comes from Germany to visit Voichita at her small, isolated monastery and tries to convince her friend to leave with her. When Voichita refuses Alina doesn’t take her response too lightly.
Mungiu’s film feels as much like a prison break as a glimpse into Orthodox, ultra-devout monasticism. The lone priest (Valeriu Andriuta) is a silent jailer whose motives Alina frequently calls into question. Small wooden, windowed huts and frequent snowstorms make the place look more like Stalag 17 than The Bell’s of St. Mary’s.
- 10/22/2012
- by Neal Dhand
- SoundOnSight
Chicago International Film Festival 2012
Beyond the Hills
Directed by: Cristian Mungiu
Cast: Cosmina Stratan, Cristina Flutur, Doru Ana
Running Time: 2 hrs 30 mins
Rating: Nr
Release Date: Tbd
Click Here for complete coverage of the Chicago International Film Festival (Ciff 2012)
Plot: A nun (Stratan) reunites with her friend (Flutur) from a past orphanage, and invites her to stay at the convent, with troublesome results.
Who’S It For? With its pacing and subject matter, this is for people ready for some lengthy cold European drama.
Overall
Beyond the Hills is an emotionally frost-bitten movie of hushed voices and the constant visual of seeing the back of someone’s head, (even though they’re talking) which is a thoughtful cocktail that makes for a compelling image in the beginning, but eventually becomes incredibly starchy as the movie refuses to pick up its pace. How’s that for an opening sentence? Even the performances,...
Beyond the Hills
Directed by: Cristian Mungiu
Cast: Cosmina Stratan, Cristina Flutur, Doru Ana
Running Time: 2 hrs 30 mins
Rating: Nr
Release Date: Tbd
Click Here for complete coverage of the Chicago International Film Festival (Ciff 2012)
Plot: A nun (Stratan) reunites with her friend (Flutur) from a past orphanage, and invites her to stay at the convent, with troublesome results.
Who’S It For? With its pacing and subject matter, this is for people ready for some lengthy cold European drama.
Overall
Beyond the Hills is an emotionally frost-bitten movie of hushed voices and the constant visual of seeing the back of someone’s head, (even though they’re talking) which is a thoughtful cocktail that makes for a compelling image in the beginning, but eventually becomes incredibly starchy as the movie refuses to pick up its pace. How’s that for an opening sentence? Even the performances,...
- 10/21/2012
- by Nick Allen
- The Scorecard Review
Alina (Cristina Flutur) returns to the impoverished Romanian community of her childhood in the hope of reuniting with Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) and returning with her to Germany and a new life. Upon arrival though, Alina discovers that Voichita has set up a new life for herself in a remote monastery and replaced her love with that of God. Undeterred, yet at the risk of her own mental wellbeing, Alina desperately tries to undermine the monasteries priest (Valeriu Andriuta) and reclaim Voichita’s devotion.
In Beyond the Hills, Romanian-born writer-director Cristian Mungiu’s follow-up to the award-winning and acclaimed 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, the complicated bond between two women is once again put under the spotlight. Alina and Voichita, once unified, have been separated for several years, each influenced by life in different ways. Alina has become strained under the pressure of her desired independence, while Voichita has found acceptance – and...
In Beyond the Hills, Romanian-born writer-director Cristian Mungiu’s follow-up to the award-winning and acclaimed 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, the complicated bond between two women is once again put under the spotlight. Alina and Voichita, once unified, have been separated for several years, each influenced by life in different ways. Alina has become strained under the pressure of her desired independence, while Voichita has found acceptance – and...
- 10/15/2012
- by Jamie Neish
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Cristian Mungiu’s (4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days) sombre, unsettling film about the polarisation of religion and the individual is another challenging effort from the director, one which, despite an over-long 150-minute run-time, is well worth the trip for the patient viewer.
Best friends Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) and Alina (Cristina Flutur) have long since diverged on their life paths, but meet up under emotional circumstances when Alina comes to visit Voichita, who is now a nun at a secluded monastery. Emotionally cold and situated in a desolate expanse without even modern necessities like electricity, it is clear early on that Voichita is not who Alina expected to meet, and we quickly begin to fear that she has been brainwashed by “Papa” (Valeriu Andriuta), the authoritarian leader of the church. The very fact that her accommodation in the monastery is frequently referred to as a “cell” only helps generate an atmosphere of incarceration,...
Cristian Mungiu’s (4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days) sombre, unsettling film about the polarisation of religion and the individual is another challenging effort from the director, one which, despite an over-long 150-minute run-time, is well worth the trip for the patient viewer.
Best friends Voichita (Cosmina Stratan) and Alina (Cristina Flutur) have long since diverged on their life paths, but meet up under emotional circumstances when Alina comes to visit Voichita, who is now a nun at a secluded monastery. Emotionally cold and situated in a desolate expanse without even modern necessities like electricity, it is clear early on that Voichita is not who Alina expected to meet, and we quickly begin to fear that she has been brainwashed by “Papa” (Valeriu Andriuta), the authoritarian leader of the church. The very fact that her accommodation in the monastery is frequently referred to as a “cell” only helps generate an atmosphere of incarceration,...
- 10/13/2012
- by Shaun Munro
- Obsessed with Film
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