NZIFF: Fjord

A divisive talking point at Cannes even before it took its top award, Cristian Mungiu’s story of a conservative immigrant family under institutional suspicion is a barbed interrogation of liberal Nordic attitudes.

Cristian Mungiu is one of ten directors to have won the prestigious Palme d’Or at Cannes twice — first in 2007 for his Romanian New Wave portrayal of illegal abortion in the Communist era, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, and now for Fjord, a disquieting, thorny feature that makes an ethical dilemma of clashing beliefs in our globalised world of so-called culture wars.

The Gheorghiu family have relocated from Romania, the homeland of the father Mihai (Sebastian Stan), to a village in Norway, where the mother Lisbet (Renate Reinsve) is from. The dramatic scenery is postcard-perfect, but the devout evangelical couple are soon questioning the move.

They fall under the scrutiny of neighbours and care workers who suspect them of child abuse after their daughter turns up at school with bruises, leading to a judicial investigation. The film draws on real-life custody cases that sparked intense international debate and protest over whether Norwegian child protection services were doing a model job in harm prevention, or whether intolerance cuts both ways and can be a blind spot for progressives.

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