Romanian film review – A year in films: 2013 favourites

This is it, the end of another year and the season of all top ten and must-see/ -read/ -listen (fill in the blanks) lists. And since I am a shameless fan of these charts, even if they sometimes leave me baffled or worse, in a state of rage, I will certainly not miss this chance of hitting you with my very own list of must-see films of 2013. My colleagues have already done the great job of gathering the links to all this year's reviews of Romanian films and if you are wondering which of these titles should not be missed, ask no further. Here they are: Released at the end of 2012 and running this year as well, Cristian Mungiu's Dupădealuri/Beyond the Hills (official image in picture above) is a true masterpiece, a film that is almost unbearable to sit through but majestic in its beauty and impressive in its mature, balanced approach to such delicate questions as religion, social structures, and human relationships. A wonderfully accomplished work, it is by far the best Romanian film I have seen in the past years. The story of a close friendship between a nun and her childhood friend benefits from haunting acting and gorgeous images. It will break your heart and leave you in awe. This year's “winner”, at least as far as awards are concerned, is Călin Peter Netzer's Pozițiacopilului/Child's Pose, an incredibly tense and well-acted drama about a monstuously devoted and fierce mother trying to save her son after he had killed a child in a car accident. The winner of the International Film Festival Berlin is a must-see. It's less monumental than Beyond the Hills but nevertheless a huge step forward for young director Netzer, whose previous Medalia de onoare/Medal of Honour was a promising film but I have to confess I would have never expected him to deliver such a powerful feature after that. Infuriating and sharp, this one will keep you and the edge of your seat.

Another favourite is actually a German one (it's cheating a bit, I know) with Romanian subjects. Philip Scheffner's Revision is a thrilling, devastating documentary which focuses on the killing of two Roma men from Craiova at the German-Polish border in 1992. Premiering in Romania at