In Kontinental ’25, Romanian filmmaker Radu Jude once again demonstrates his unparalleled ability to dissect the moral complexities of contemporary society. Shot on an iPhone and wrapped in an apparent visual simplicity, this latest work stands as one of his most powerful and provocative to date.
Jude, known for his scathing perspective in films like Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn and Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World, delivers in Kontinental ’25 a more intimate yet no less devastating narrative. The story follows Orsolya (played with subtle intensity by Eszter Tompa), a middle-upper class eviction officer who must face the consequences of her “humanitarian” labor when a homeless man she was supposed to evict takes his own life.
The film opens with a Hitchcockian twist, dedicating its first fifteen minutes to the homeless man (a remarkable Gabriel Spahiu) as he wanders the streets of Cluj, a city transformed into a grotesque neoliberal stage where robots and animatronic dinosaurs contrast with human decay. This introduction sets the stage for the film’s true protagonist: Orsolya’s conscience, caught in a pendulum swing between guilt and the need for absolution.
Jude skillfully juggles cinematic and historical influences—from a narrative structure inspired by Hitchcock’s Psycho to echoes of Rossellini’s Europe ’51. The nod to Bertolt Brecht—“The more innocent they are, the more they deserve to die”—lands like a slap, underscoring the irony and moral ambiguity that saturate the film. Kontinental ’25 is a meditation on the banality of goodness within a system built on systemic cruelty. Orsolya, who initially seeks validation for her “good heart,” encounters a parade of characters—her boss, a former student—whose indifference reveals the deep human disconnection of our era. Jude’s dry comedy thrives in these moments, where the line between empathy and self-congratulation blurs dangerously.
The use of a consumer-grade camera, far from diminishing the film’s impact, reinforces the aesthetic of “poverty of means” that Jude embraces in homage to Rossellini. This visual choice complements the narrative, highlighting the coldness of the environment and the trivialization of moral dilemmas in a world where good intentions seem to have no place. Kontinental ’25 not only reaffirms Radu Jude as one of today’s most incisive filmmakers—it also invites the viewer to confront their own moral contradictions. With his caustic humor and unflinching gaze, the film becomes a ruthless mirror reflecting the fractures of our reality.
