4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days

With its long takes, stationary compositions, deliberate pacing, and prosaic dialogue, writer-director Cristian Mungiu's Cannes' Golden Palm-winning 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days offers a grimly realistic cinéma vJritJ-style tale revolving around the difficulty of obtaining a secret abortion during the waning days of communism in Romania circa the late 1980s. A stark look at the suffocating character of the crumbling Ceausescu regime, particularly its brutal treatment of women, the narrative follows the efforts of university student Otilia (Anamaria Marinca) in helping her terrified roommate Gabita (Laura Vasiliu) terminate a pregnancy. Otilia must overcome the indifference of clerks while trying to rent a hotel room for the procedure (a sequence powerfully conveying the contempt of the bureaucracy toward ordinary people), meet the black-market abortionist (and comply with the loathsome man's sexual demands), and also make a social appearance at a birthday party for her boyfriend's mother. Presented with stunning directness, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days—the title indicates the length of the pregnancy—is a remarkable if often hard to watch film that plays out in a Bucharest of shabby buildings and dark, deserted streets, offering both a searing indictment of a derailed society and a harrowing personal story. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. [Note: DVD extras include a 25-minute interview with writer/director/producer Cristian Mungiu, the 16-minute 'making-of' featurette '1 Month with 4 Months 3 Weeks and 2 Days' by Sorin Avram, a seven-minute interview with cinematographer Oleg Mutu, and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a powerful film.] (F. Swietek) [Blu-ray/DVD Review—Jan. 29, 2019—Criterion, 113 min., in Romanian w/English subtitles, not rated, DVD: 2 discs, $29.95; Blu-ray: $39.95—Making its latest appearance on DVD and debut on Blu-ray, 2007’s 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days features a great transfer with a DTS-HD 5.1 soundtrack on the Blu-ray release. Extras include a 2007 Cannes Film Festival press conference (45 min.), new interviews with director Cristian Mungiu (38 min.) and film critic Jay Weissberg (25 min.), a 2007 short on 'The Romanian Tour' of the film (16 min.), alternate and deleted scenes (14 min.), and an essay by critic Ella Taylor. Bottom line: this outstanding foreign drama makes a welcome debut on Blu-ray.]