It takes a stark, shattering film such as 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days to make you realize how trumped-up most of our movie narratives are. This Romanian import knows that you can find all the drama and tragedy you need in real life. The title refers to the amount of time Gabita (Laura Vasiliu), a college student under communism in 1987 Romania, has been pregnant. With the help of her friend Otilia (a wrenching Anamaria Marinca), Gabita tries to arrange for an illegal abortion, a harrowing process that writer-director Cristian Mungiu chronicles by focusing on the banal details of desperation. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days is excruciating to watch, yet never for a moment exploitative. The reason for this – and the reason it rises above any pro-choice or pro-life preachiness, even though members of both sides could find evidence to adopt it – is that the picture’s first concern is for the humanity of its characters, born or not.
