4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (2007)

4 Months,3 Weeks and 2 Days is not a movie for everyone.It can be very strong for a sensible person.But,this is a challenging and fascinating movie.I said this movie is not for everyone because it has a very disturbing scenes.But,that scene is completely justified and the thing I most appreciated on them was the realism it shows.A very strong realism that other movies do not show.So,this is also a brave movie.This film has a perfect creation of atmosphere and it made me feel I was inside that scenes.The performances are phenomenal.They are so natural that the actors do not seem to be acting.4 Months,3 Weeks and 2 Days is a spectacular film which is brave,fascinating and a challenge to the spectator.One of the best films of 2007.

Fmovies: Winner of last years Palme d'Or this Romanian film set in the eighties and is a cross between Richard Linklater's 2001 film 'Tape', in that the majority of the action takes place in one room between three central characters and Mike Leigh's 2004 film 'Vera Drake' in that its central theme is illegal abortion. It is a film about the human condition, trust, betrayal, the extremes people have to go to sometimes and the consequences that follow certain actions. It has two great performances from the college roommates Otilia and Gabita from their introduction to us as they make plans for a trip through to the grizzly outcome that concludes the film. The setting is grim and the bleached out film stock adds to the jittery camera work and gives an uneasy feeling throughout, instantly you are transported to a time where people barter with tic tacs, cigarettes and powdered milk and the promise of sugar is a dream to many and a reality to only a few. Gabita's predicament and subsequent journey both physically and mentally are what drives the film but its shown mainly through the eyes of her friend and roommate Otilia who as well as making and carrying out the arrangements has to make some startling sacrifices and ones that she will have memory of forever, as will you the audience long after the film has finished. Although not an easy watch and considering the subject matter not something you can say you 'enjoyed' it is none the less a brilliant piece of film-making, subtle and emotive with very real character studies. A brutal in your face look at a bleak time in history, how a leader destroyed the economy of a country and what that did to everyday life and a reminder of how far behind the rest of us Eastern Europe was before the fall of the Iron curtain and particularly Romania before the Revolution of 1989.

The story is a very simple one. It's 1987 in Romania and abortion is illegal. Pregnant student Gabita and her roommate Otilia check into a cheap hotel where a backstreet abortionist called Bebe is going to deal with Gabita's problem. Under Romanian law, the degree of illegality depends on how long Gabita has been pregnant: on this subject, as on most others, she is worryingly vague. Very cleverly, the writer makes Otilia, the more resourceful of the girls, the protagonist. Otilia needs all her courage to deal with the suspicious hotel staff, to meet Bebe's demands, to evade the police and jail. The obvious words to use are spare, direct, realistic. The suspense generated is astonishing. The question of whether abortion is right or wrong is irrelevant to the psychology of the film - all that matters is that it is dangerous. I have great sympathy for all those Romanians who have written comments on this site, complaining about the portrayal of their beloved country. However, I believe that this film reflects well on Romania today. It's certainly a much more sophisticated and honest film than Vera Drake, which was hideously sentimental.

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days fmovies. This is a movie from the highest rated young Romanian director who won highest appreciation from the Cannes festival (Golden Palm) in 2007. It's a movie that will make you feel like a human being again and after seeing it you will surely think much better about Romanian cinematography. The movie is a drama of a human being that is oppressed by the communist regime in Romania, one of the most criminal regimes of this century.In the last years of the Romanian communism, the dictator's wife "Elena Ceausescu" made it clear for everyone that abortion is no longer permitted and that had a lot of implications later on. Although the movie is not about the regime itself but about the character and her personal drama. 4 Months 3 Weeks & 2 Days is supposedly the beginning of a series of films Mungiu is hoping to make called The Golden Age, each about life in Communist Romania. I hope he's successful; if this film is an example of the kind of rough-hew humanity and blunt realism we can expect in future films, I'd definitely seek them out. As it is, 4 Months 3 Weeks & 2 Days moved me and challenged me, made me feel and made me think, demonstrated the personal and political challenges of a heartbreaking choice that, in many ways, is no choice at all-- and that's a rare enough achievement, and one worthy of seeking out.This movie is a work of art

I have read many reviews about this particular movie but I had the chance to watch it only yesterday. Since I am a citizen of a neighboring ex-communist country - Bulgaria - I am well familiar with the essence of the communist regimes at the end of their existence. The were not so cruel like in the 50-s and the 60-s, it was more a farce than a real, normal life and society. Everybody, except the old "loyal" and thickheaded communists, had lost their faith in the "bright future" long ago, but also everybody pretended to be loyal to the party-state for pure selfish reasons. It is shown very well in the movie where, in this "the best of all possible societies", the ordinary people make their shopping mainly at the black market, where they have to do a simple medical procedure illegally, and at the cost of fear and humiliation. This atmosphere becomes grimmer with the dirty streets and the old jalopies, with the rude receptionists and the corrupt people all over the city, with the stupid indifference of the boy's parents and their friends - the so called "elite" in this eliteless society.

I am sure the movie will not be properly understood by the citizens of the free countries who had only heard about communism but had never experienced it. Nevertheless it is worth seeing and I am very glad that such films, together with "The Lives of Others" (Das Leben Der Anderen), have won prestige international awards.

I was fortunate to see this film during the TIFF last week. With Palm d'Or behind the title, my expectation was high and I was amazingly satisfied.

As an audience in TIFF, we also got to have a Q&A session with Cristian, the director and it was apparent to me that he is a very intelligent man. Everything that was in the movie was well thought and planned. There is no accidents about this movie.

There are quite a few unclear scenes. However after, the director answered a few questions for the audience and I got to understand his point of view. It was clear to me what he was trying to show us. There is no wasted scenes or filler during the whole show.

There is a particular scene where many don't understand why it is so long and meaningless. Many viewers got frustrated, irritated and restless after a while. But that is exactly what the director wants us to feel. He plays with his audience through his film. What a brilliant idea ! For those who has seen it, will understand. Your feeling is exactly what Otilia was feelings.

This is not an anti-abortion movie as the director said. There is no political statement. It is just a daily life of a few Romanians during the period and you can feel it through this movie.

For all other foreign film fan, this is an absolute must see for this year.