Mihal and Lisbet Gheorgiu, a deeply religious Romanian-Norwegian couple, move with their five children to a coastal village in a Norwegian fjord following the death of Mihal’s father. Despite their conservative views, rooted in the Bible, they soon become friends with their neighbours, the much more modern Halberg family. When their daughter Elia turns up at school one day with bruises, the village community is shocked and begins to turn increasingly against the strict, religious upbringing of the children.
What happens when worldviews clash? To what extent must one conform, and what remains of personal freedom? It is these questions that the Romanian director Cristian Mungiu explores in this gripping drama, based on true events. At its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, the film was greeted with a twelve-minute standing ovation. Ultimately, Fjord went on to win the Palme d’Or there. Starring, amongst others, Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve.
