A profound and bruising study of a country whose long-suffering inhabitants are cowed into incommunication by various forms of repressive dictatorship, it's another muted triumph from director Cristian Mungiu.

Beyond the Hills is a film of great formal rigour and a furious indictment of religion as an instrument of patriarchal oppression.

"Beyond the Hills" seethes with astonishment and rage at a broken society marooned between the 21st century and the 16th.

Beyond the Hills is a disturbing yet riveting look at how society shapes our beliefs and actions, anchored by two equally powerful performances by its lead actresses.