Voichita and Alina grew up together in an orphanage until they reached adulthood. Afterward, the former was taken in by a local monastery, while the latter was placed with an adoptive family—from whom she eventually ran away to go to Germany.
Now, Alina has returned to take her friend away with her—the only person she has ever loved, and by whom she has ever been loved in return. But Voichita is not certain she wants to leave the religious community. Meanwhile, Alina’s restlessness leads the priest and the nuns to believe that she is either ill or possessed by a demon.
Best Screenplay Award at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival
Best Actress Award for Cosmina Stratan
"Mungiu’s cinema concedes absolutely nothing. It does not indulge in effects; it neither over-emphasizes nor remains silent. It observes with the seemingly indifferent balance of a long take, building intensity through duration—much like a long-distance race. It is neither empathetic nor ingratiating. Yet, in the end, it manages to reach the very roots of pathos—physical roots, even before moral ones. It is as if, despite its iconoclastic appearance, this cinema demands an act of faith from the viewer. It is a challenge to the limits of one’s patience—a sacrifice involving an exhausting length that gradually warps into the intolerable tension of violent gestures and actions. Consider the densely packed scene of Alina’s 'crucifixion,' with nuns crowding the frame, scrambling over her body in an attempt to restrain her—to chain her within the 'off-screen' space of the spirit. And then, as if that weren’t enough, one deviation follows another—a *détournement* that catches us off guard and puts our tolerance to the test. The off-road vehicle approaching the convent. The final dialogue between the police officers regarding time, as the shot gradually tightens onto the road, consigning the protagonists—and the moral dilemmas they carry—firmly into the darkness. Then, a splash of mud hits the windshield. Cut. We are finally free. And yet, our souls and our eyes remain shackled to this marvel." (Aldo Spiniello)
