This Cannes Palme d'Or winning 'Unforgettable Cinematic Odyssey' is another extraordinary entry from
the Romanian New Wave Cinema and likely its most significant to date. Like some of its companions in
this burgeoning new movement, namely Cristi Puiu "Death of Mr. Lazarescu" - Cristian Mungiu's newest;
"4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" deals in stark realist drama with an unflinching eye and cinematography
set on depicting the most microscopic, discomfiting aspects of a harrowing circumstance and its effects
on a life. That it also frames the daily and the mundane in a equally harsh light, makes the contrast of the
high- drama even more difficult a watch. I won't say more here, as the film just needs to be seen rather
than spoken-of in advance. But, what I feel should be stressed is the social (and political) ramifications
of the situations explored here; being the subject of one's existential and individual freedom and rights
in society - and the injustice that this film depicts as a consequence of a political agenda that diminishes
the value of those rights. "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" proposes an intense exploration of these concepts,
through a rare combination of riveting acting, disciplined directing and a cinematic experience delivered with
weighty psychological impact. All craftfully masked as (yet another) current film dealing with the subject of
teen/20-something pregnancy - unlike those cinema-sitcoms, this one though, is altogether something else.
Link to "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" Official site
Link to Landmark Theatres screening calendar
Link to US Theatrical Trailer
