Starring: Yllka Gashi, Cun Lajci, Aurita Agushi, Kumrije Hoxha
Distributor: Icon Films
Runtime: 84 mins. Reviewed in Feb 2022
Reviewer: Peter W Sheehan
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This subtitled drama tells the true story of a woman whose husband went missing in the 1998-1999 Kosovo War. She struggled to exist with her family in a community that was culturally hostile to what she needed to do to survive.
The film is based on real-life events about a Kosovo widow, Fahrije Hoti (who is still alive), and is a co-production involving Kosovo, North Macedonia, Albania and Switzerland. It became the first movie in the history of the Sundance Film Festival to win all three of its major – the main Jury Prize, and awards for direction and audience appreciation. It is also the first feature film for female director Blerta Basholli. It richly deserves its many awards.
The movie portrays a single woman’s determination to survive after her husband is reported missing, presumed killed in the 1998-1999 war in Kosovo. Gashi plays Fahrije, who grieves for her husband, and struggles financially to care for her family after he has gone. The Kosovo war with Serbia and Montenegro left more than 3000 soldiers missing in action; and the film is set in the scenic hillside village of Krusha, where brutal massacres occurred at the end of the war.
The film follows the life of Fahrije in detail. Fahrije was left with two children – a young boy, and a rebellious teenage girl. She also had a wheelchair-bound father-in-law, Haxhi (Lajci) who insisted on being the sole provider by selling pots of honey, which was not at all profitable. She decided to set up a small business selling ajvar (a condiment made of toasted, minced bell peppers), but her business efforts angered members of her village community.
Fahrije attempted to get help from the local women in her town, but her attempts were met with initial resistance; villagers were too used to being governed in a patriarchal way. As a single mother, Fahrije knew she had to find a job to support her two children, but she met resistance by trying to set up a business venture. She slowly pulled together the other widows in her community to launch a project that marketed local village food. She started to sell village pickles and preserves, and a number of women in her community, eager to live more independently, slowly came forward to help her. At first they mocked her, but then stood by her when they perceived that she was providing a way to assert their independence, and overcome their anxieties. The film depicts a successful quest for self-determination by village women to exist in a culture that is deeply misogynistic. Some men reacted, first by destroying the jars of ajvar, and later by attempted rape.
Gashi’s acting outstandingly honours the life of Fahrije Hoti and the fighting spirit of women by projecting a compelling and powerful portrait of a woman who refused to submit to unbending rules of male control. The men of the village didn’t want to support her; neither did her children; neither did Haxhi; and neither did most of the other women – at first. The film is a moving portrait of a woman, whose resolve slowly empowered those around her.
The movie gives insightful glimpses into traditional cultures, where men accept that they leave for war without ever knowing how their wives and children, who might be left behind, can survive. It celebrates feminine strength and applauds female resilience, and its lessons on endurance reach well beyond the culture of Kosovo. The film builds its storyline almost entirely around the determination and self-reliance of one very determined woman, but it is a realistic portrayal of extraordinary human endurance and initiative. This is not a savage or brutal movie in any way. It is a personal story, set above the war crimes in Kosovo, and its real heart lies with the widows of war left behind, trapped by a grief they don’t know how to express.
This is an evocative, compelling movie that pointedly explores the interpersonal tensions that war creates, especially where cultural change might be needed to help those left behind to survive.
Icon Film Distribution
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