DMovies - Your platform for thought-provoking cinema

Three Kilometres to the End of the World (Trei Kilometri Pana la Capatul Lumii)

Solemn and austere drama explores the dark machinations of homophobia in rural Romania, with a familiar yet jarring story bursting with subtleties - from the 68th BFI London Film Festival

Seventeen-year-old Adi (Ciprian Chiujdea) lives with his parents in a small rural town in Romania, not far from the Ukrainian border and the Black Sea, near the town of Tulcea. One evening, he shows up at home with a severely battered face, leaving his perplexed parents to investigate the violent incident, and ahead of the shambolic police officers in charge of the crime. It doesn’t take long before Adi’s father Florin (Bogdan Dumitrache) finds out that his neighbour’s two sons around the same age as Adi assaulted him, and that the two teens could face up to seven years in jail should the family decide to prosecute them.

It soon surfaces that the crime was motivated by homophobia, after the quiet Adi was found kissing a male tourist. The perpetrators barely hesitate before confessing the offence, defending their actions based on sheer hate of homosexuals. Same-sex affection is diminished to penetration: they shudder at mere thought that Adi could “get fucked up the arse”. Florin and his wife share very similar values, and reproach their only son for his dishonourable conduct. The knowledge that they have a gay son could do irreparable damage to the family, so perhaps it is best if they put the whole ordeal to rest. They can count on the support of the corrupt authorities, including the influential father of the two boys. The problem is that Adi is over 16, and the decision whether to seek legal action lies entirely in his hands. So the deeply conservative family takes matters into their own hands, aided by the local orthodox priest.

Emanuel Parvu’s third feature film is an astute study of the ignoble mechanisms of homophobia, and how they keep young people shackled to the ultraconservative paradigms of a fast-changing society. Romania is a secular nation, which legalised homosexuality nearly 30 years ago. Yet Adi’s family violently refuse to acknowledge the love that dare not speak its name. The worlds “gay:” and “homosexual” are never uttered throughout the entire duration of this 105-minute drama. Adi’s shy and non-judgmental friend Ilinca (Ingrid Berescu) is the only person that can provide him with emotional support.

This is a familiar story to LGBT+ people in many parts of the world, including the UK. There is no shortage of rabid homophobia in our rural backlands, and even in our big cities. Three Kilometres to the End of the World does not add anything new to LGBT+ cinema. What it does extremely well is to dissect the minutiae of oppression, and to paint a realistic picture of a widely-known type of hate crime. The language is extremely sombre and austere. The characters are often laconic. They communicate with silent, piercing gazes. At one point, Adi bravely faces the camera with his broken face still swollen, his left eye barely visible. In reality, he is facing the mirror. A subjective POV confrontation that invites audiences to step into the shoes of the protagonist, and to understand that the pain of breaking away from his conservative family can be as intense as that of his wounds.

The dialogues too are simple and effective: the priest explains that it’s ok to tie someone up “if it’s for their own good and the good of others”, with the Child Services officer promptly explaining that “it is ok to think whatever you want, but it’s not ok to do whatever you want”. It seems that, after all. there is a slimmer of hope in the Romanian institutions. Incidentally, this is the country that arrseted ultramisogynistic influencer Andrew Tate

The imagery is quiet and solemn, with static, long and medium shots conveying a sense of imprisonment and alienation. The performances are sullen and profound. It all gels together neatly, creating a jarring depiction of a closely-knit community united by their detestation of homosexuality. An honest and vivid portrait of lingering homosexuality in the easternmost borders of the EU. There is still a long way to go before Europe overcomes the living ghosts of the “traditional family” and religious intolerance.

Three Kilometres to the End of the World premiered in the Official Competition of the 77th Cannes International Film Festival, when this piece was originally written. A film guaranteed to reach the LGBT+ film circuit everywhere, and a strong contender for small theatrical distribution in countries such as the UK. The UK premiere takes place in October, during the 68th BFI London Film Festival.


By Victor Fraga - 17-05-2024

Victor Fraga is a Brazilian born and London-based journalist and filmmaker with more than 20 years of involvement in the cinema industry and beyond. He is an LGBT writer, and describes himself as a di...

DMovies Poll

Are the Oscars dirty enough for DMovies?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Most Read

Sexual diversity is at the very heart of [Read More...]
Just a few years back, finding a film [Read More...]
Forget Friday the 13th, Paranormal Activity and the [Read More...]
A lot of British people would rather forget [Read More...]
QUICK AND DIRTY: LIVE FROM TALLINN A candidate’s [Read More...]
Pigs might fly. And so Brexit might happen. [Read More...]

Read More

Seeking Haven for Mr Rambo

Khaled Mansour
2024

Victor Fraga - 07-12-2024

Fiercely loyal mongrel becomes a token of resistance, in this urban tale of survival from Egypt - in the Main Competition of the 4th Red Sea International Film Festival [Read More...]

Our dirty questions to Rodrigo Areias

 

Eoghan Lyng - 06-12-2024

Eoghan Lyng interviews the director of The Worst Man in London, about a deviant British-Portuguese painter from the 19th century; they talk about London under candlelight, Barry Lyndon, the pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, cold sensations in film, and much more - as part of ArteKino 2024 [Read More...]

The Tale of Daye’s Family

Karim Elshenawy
2024

Victor Fraga - 06-12-2024

Nubian albino boy dreams of making it big on a television singing talent show - Egyptian fable of sorts opens the 4th Red Sea International Film Festival [Read More...]