Katalin Varga
(Peter Strickland) Hilda Péter, Norbert Tankó, Tibor Pálffy, Melinda Kantor
Running time: 82 minutes
Rating: 4/5

THIS powerful, poetic revenge tragedy is the story of Katalin Varga (Hilda Péter), a Romanian woman forced to face her brutal past. When her husband discovers a long-held secret, she flees her conservative village with her son Orbán (Norbert Tankó) and goes in search of natural justice in rural Transylvania.

The film was written and directed by first-timer Peter Strickland, an Englishman who went to Hungary and Romania with no language and a budget of just €30,000.

The result is a superbly controlled effort, awash in rural poetry and an elegant, understated storytelling. Strickland's lead, with her proud, optimistic face, is compelling: she walks her way into savage, off-camera violence and a complicated moral maze. One scene, where she confronts in a boat the sad, horse-faced Antal (Tibor Pálffy) makes for a terrific monologue. The film, shot in the fog-tipped, creepy Carpathians, shimmers with dread and atmosphere and is awash with David Lynch-style heightened sound. Strickland's camera is as attuned to way of life as it is to plot. A director to watch.