Film Forum

WINNER! Special Jury Prize, 2024 Venice Film Festival

Under the deep blue, portentous sky of the rugged Georgian countryside, Nina, an OB/GYN with both heroic and dark impulses, faces malpractice charges brought by an aggressive husband whose child died during delivery. Meanwhile, it is an open secret that she provides illegal abortions to village women. Dea Kulumbegashvili’s sophomore work plumbs the outer limits of feminist empathy and the stark realities of patriarchal control of women’s bodies in a modern-day medical system. Cinematographer Arseni Khachaturian (EYIMOFE) captures the stunning contrast of beauty and brutality in Nina’s world, and composer Matthew Herbert (THE WONDER) creates the sound and sense of an immersive, whispering breath.

Presented with support from The Ashes and Diamonds Fund for Eastern European Film and The Endowed Fund for Emerging Filmmakers

2024     134 MIN.     FRANCE / ITALY / GEORGIA     METROGRAPH PICTURES
IN GEORGIAN WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES

Reviews

“A mystical cinematic revelation…Kulumbegashvili’s filmmaking is so singular, it speaks for itself… unmistakably alive in a way cinema seldom is.”
– Savina Petkova, The Film Stage

“There isn’t a horror director alive who wouldn’t kill to create frames as tense, ominous, and viscerally captivating as those of Georgian filmmaker Dea Kulumbegashvili, who applies her talents toward elemental character studies about rural women suffering under the yoke of patriarchy at the foot of the Caucasus Mountains.”
– David Ehrlich, IndieWire

“Altogether extraordinary. Unfolds with the high-stakes, breath-stopping tension of a thriller.”
– Guy Lodge, Variety

“One of the best films of the 21st century. Expands your conception of what cinema can be.”
– Wendy Ide, Screen Daily

“Brilliant. A filmmaker so exquisitely precise in the design and choreography of her visuals…Kulumbegashvili’s brutal formalism and intellectual rigour contribute to a feminism fraught with agonising, self-conscious contradiction, which provides no glib, easy answers about sisterhood or solidarity.”
– Jessica Kiang, Sight and Sound

“EXQUISITE…HAUNTS FROM ITS OPENING SHOT…A film that will linger with you long afterward…This is a testament to the power of Dea Kulumbegashvili’s artistry. In only her second feature, the Georgian writer-director has crafted a film filled with images that will sear into your mind, even as they challenge your patience. She favors long, static takes that may frustrate you, even as you admire their beauty or the boldness of their framing. While it may be difficult to discern what Kulumbegashvili’s aim is in the moment, the cumulative effect of her storytelling approach packs an undeniable wallop…But there’s also beauty to be found here, whether it’s a field of bright red poppies, the thick gray of a gathering storm or a pinky-purple pre-dawn sky after a long and difficult night.”
– Christy Lemire, RogerEbert.com

“Shattering and essential… APRIL confirms Kulumbegashvili as among the most essential and uncompromising European filmmakers.”
– Jake Coyle, Associated Press