(Radu June, Romania/Switzerland/Luxembourg/Brazil/ UK 2025, 109 min., DCP, Romanian, Hungarian, and German with English subtitles)
Romanian provocateur Radu Jude last screened a film at the Dryden only three months ago, with his AI-infested exploration of Dracula. Filmed nearly concurrently, with common cast and crew members, Kontinental ‘25 is Jude reverting to an earlier time in his career, likely his most straightforward narrative feature in a decade, with Scarred Hearts. His protagonist here is Orsolya (Eszter Tompa), a bailiff who has been charged with clearing squatters from derelict buildings purchased by rich developers. When tragedy strikes, Orsolya falls into a spiral of self-recrimination seeking comfort from those around her without any true assurance. Echoing Roberto Rossellini’s Europa ‘51, in name if not in theme, Jude’s social commentary is no less barbed, skewering the human toll of Romania’s housing crisis and devolution into unrestrained capitalism.
Followed by a recorded conversation between directors Richard Linklater and Radu Jude.