Graduation
Directed by Cristian Mingiu
Romania/France/Belgium | 2016 | Fiction | 128 min | Romanian w/English subtitles
Film Source: IFC/Sundance Selects
Awards/premier festivals: Cannes – Best Director
Also showing Thursday, October 26 at 3:45PM
Graduation presents a classic moral dilemma: Does the end justify the means when your child’s future is at stake? When his 18-year-old daughter is sexually assaulted and injures her writing arm before a crucial exam that will determine her scholarship eligibility at a prestigious British university, Romeo (the excellent Adrian Titieni) must decide whether to use his influence as a respected doctor to tip the scales of educational justice in her favor. In a style reminiscent of Michael Haneke’s Caché, Cristian Mungiu (director of the 2007 Palme d’Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days) imbues the film with a sense of menace lurking beneath the ostensible normalcy of a Romanian society still scarred by the authoritarian communist rule of the Nicolae Ceauşescu era. Expertly blending drama and suspense, Graduation probes the sacrifices an oppressed generation continues to make for the uncertain future of Romania’s youth. ~LB
