BUCHAREST — Romanian director Cristian Mungiu’s latest film, *Fjord*, has sparked intense debate following its premiere at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, where it took home the top prize. The movie explores complex questions about child welfare, cultural conflict, and the limits of tolerance in contemporary liberal societies.
Set in a small Norwegian town, *Fjord* tells the story of Lisbet, a Christian woman, and her Romanian husband Mihai, whose children are threatened with removal by local authorities investigating claims of abuse. Norwegian officials intervene after Mihai admits to occasionally spanking the children—a disciplinary practice he asserts is common in his homeland, but which authorities interpret as abuse. The film’s narrative centers on the couple’s struggle to regain custody, raising difficult questions about the balance between state intervention and parental rights.
Filmed in Mungiu’s characteristic observational style, featuring long takes without close-ups, the movie deliberately avoids clear moral judgments. This ambiguity is designed to challenge viewers to form their own conclusions about who is victim or perpetrator. “The aim is to understand that there are people who think differently from you,” Mungiu said in a recent interview in Bucharest, emphasizing the film’s purpose as a “non-judgmental” invitation to reconsider one’s own empathy and openness.
*Fjord* touches on broader social tensions arising from cultural differences in multicultural societies. Lisbet and Mihai’s conservative Christian lifestyle—including daily prayer, a rejection of secular music, and critical views on homosexuality—conflicts with the liberal Norwegian community around them. Mungiu said the film reflects how immigrants bring deeply held cultural values that may clash with those of their new environments, creating potential social friction. “Little by little, such differences create a lot of tension in society,” he noted, warning that unresolved conflicts risk becoming dangerous.
The film draws inspiration from real cases of child removal involving Norwegian authorities and families from Eastern Europe, including a 2015 incident involving a Romanian-Norwegian family. Mungiu, whose earlier work won acclaim for its unflinching portrayal of moral dilemmas during Romania’s communist era, said *Fjord* also addresses concerns about the current climate of social discourse. He expressed unease over what he sees as progressive movements increasingly enforcing social norms while limiting open debate, a dynamic that resonates with his experiences under authoritarian rule.
Despite its critical success, *Fjord* received some sharp criticism after Cannes for its refusal to take a clear stance. Some viewers found the film’s neutrality frustrating, though Mungiu stood by his choice to occupy a middle ground. He likened the film’s setting—where avalanches threaten the village—to the impending dangers of unresolved political and social tensions threatening modern societies. “There’s a third avalanche,” he said, “which is the one that is going to come in our real lives and wipe everything away.”