Synopsis
Beyond the Hills (După dealuri, 2012) is a Romanian drama you can watch online on iFILM, directed by Cristian Mungiu from his screenplay based on Tatiana Niculescu Bran's documentary books about a real incident at an Orthodox monastery in early 2000s Romania. At Cannes, it picked up the Best Screenplay prize and an unusual shared Best Actress award — both leads, Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur, were honoured together.
Alina has come back from Germany for one reason: to take Voichita with her. Voichita is the only person who ever loved her, and the feeling was mutual. But Voichita has given herself to the monastery and its priest, and she is not leaving. Alina stays. She disrupts the rhythm of the community simply by being there, by demanding something the monastic life cannot give — personal loyalty over devotion. The tension mounts not through plot turns but through accumulation, day after day, until something breaks.
Mungiu shoots in long, static takes with no score, which means there is nowhere to hide from the discomfort — it sits on screen and waits for you to look away. This is not a film that explains itself or assigns blame cleanly. It is 150 minutes of two women caught between need and conviction, with the institution closing in around them. Stream Beyond the Hills (2012) online on iFILM.
Starring
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