The Forgiveness of Blood

Last updated

The Forgiveness of Blood
The Forgiveness of Blood poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Joshua Marston
Written byJoshua Marston
Andamion Murataj
Starring Tristan Halilaj
CinematographyRob Hardy
Edited byMalcolm Jamieson
Release dates
  • 18 February 2011 (2011-02-18)(Berlinale)
  • 17 September 2011 (2011-09-17)(Albania)
Running time
109 minutes
CountriesUnited States
Albania
LanguageAlbanian

The Forgiveness of Blood (Albanian : Falja e Gjakut) is a 2011 drama film co-written and directed by Joshua Marston. The film premiered in competition at the 61st Berlin International Film Festival and competed for the Golden Bear. [1] [2] Marston and co-writer Andamion Murataj won the Silver Bear for Best Script. [3]

Contents

The film was originally submitted as the Albanian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film, but it was rejected when Bujar Alimani, director of Amnesty , protested that The Forgiveness of Blood ought not to be eligible due to American input on the project. The AMPAS disqualified it and Albania submitted Alimani's film instead. [4]

The film deals with the consequences of a blood feud on a family in a remote area of modern-day Albania. [2] [5] [6]

Cast

Plot

After their father and uncle are suspected of murdering a neighbor because of a land dispute, the lives of the children are changed. Nik, the teenage son, is confined to the house, while Rudina, the oldest girl, is forced to quit high school and take over the family's bread delivery business. The film contrasts the modernization of rural Albania, where the teenagers text each other and Nik dreams of opening an internet cafe, with centuries-old customs. [7]

Reception

The film earned an 84% rating at Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 7.22/10 based on 69 reviews. [6]

Cultural background

The Kanun is a traditional code of behavior that is followed rarely today in Albania, most notably in the northern highlands in deep mountains when people are stuck in the past traditions, which authorizes an eye-for-an-eye response in event of murder. According to the Kanun, the family of a murdered person should kill a member of the murderer's family. Although traditionally only adult males are at risk, there have been instances where females or children have been killed. The revenge killing can only take place outside of the person's home, so at-risk males are often confined to home while females become the sole support of the family. [8]

Awards

Related Research Articles

The Kanun is a set of Albanian traditional customary laws, which has directed all the aspects of the Albanian tribal society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Linklater</span> American film director, producer and screenwriter (born 1960)

Richard Stuart Linklater is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is known for making films that deal thematically with suburban culture and the effects of the passage of time. His films include the comedies Slacker (1990) and Dazed and Confused (1993); the Before trilogy of romance films: Before Sunrise (1995), Before Sunset (2004), and Before Midnight (2013); the music-themed comedy School of Rock (2003); the adult animated films Waking Life (2001), A Scanner Darkly (2006), and Apollo 10 1⁄2: A Space Age Childhood (2022); the coming-of-age drama Boyhood (2014); the comedy film Everybody Wants Some!! (2016); and the romantic comedy Hit Man (2023).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albanian blood feud</span> Practice in traditional Albanian culture

In traditional Albanian culture, Gjakmarrja or hakmarrja ("revenge") is the social obligation to kill an offender or a member of their family in order to salvage one's honor. This practice is generally seen as in line with the social code known as the Canon of Lekë Dukagjini or simply the Kanun. The code was originally a "a non-religious code that was used by Muslims and Christians alike."

Joshua Jacob Marston is an American screenwriter and film director best known for the film Maria Full of Grace.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rafael Morais</span> Portuguese actor

Rafael Morais is an actor. He studied theater in Lisbon, Portugal and at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in Los Angeles. Rafael Morais has worked with globally celebrated filmmakers such as Nick Hamm, Marco Martins, Pedro Cabeleira, Luis Prieto, João Canijo, Tiago Guedes, among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berlin International Film Festival</span> Annual film festival in Germany

The Berlin International Film Festival, usually called the Berlinale, is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europe's "Big Three" film festivals alongside the Venice Film Festival held in Italy and the Cannes Film Festival held in France. Furthermore, it is one of the "Big Five", the most prestigious film festivals in the world. The festival regularly draws tens of thousands of visitors each year.

<i>Caterpillar</i> (2010 film) 2010 film

Caterpillar is a 2010 Japanese drama film directed by Kōji Wakamatsu, partially drawn from Edogawa Ranpo's banned short-story "The Caterpillar".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">58th Berlin International Film Festival</span> 2008 film festival

The 58th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 7 to February 17, 2008. The festival opened with Martin Scorsese's documentary film Shine a Light. Be Kind Rewind by Michel Gondry served as the closing film. Greek filmmaker Costa Gavras, was selected to serve as the Jury President for the main competition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">32nd Berlin International Film Festival</span> Film festival

The 32nd annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 12–23 February 1982. The Golden Bear was awarded to Veronika Voss directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

<i>Auschwitz</i> (film) 2011 German film by Uwe Boll

Auschwitz is a 2011 German drama film directed by Uwe Boll.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">61st Berlin International Film Festival</span> Film festival

The 61st annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 10 to 20 February 2011, with actress Isabella Rossellini as the president of the jury. The Coen Brothers film True Grit opened the festival. 300,000 tickets were sold in total during the event, to 20,000 attendees from 116 countries, including 3900 members of the press.

<i>Gloria</i> (2013 film) 2013 film

Gloria is a 2013 Chilean-Spanish drama film directed and co-written by Sebastián Lelio. The film premiered in competition at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival, where Paulina García won the Silver Bear for Best Actress. It was shown at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. The film was selected as the Chilean entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated. It won Best Ibero-American Film at the 1st Platino Awards. Sebastián Lelio remade Gloria in 2018 as Gloria Bell, starring Julianne Moore and John Turturro.

<i>Childs Pose</i> (film) 2013 film

Child's Pose is a 2013 Romanian drama film directed by Călin Peter Netzer. The film premiered in competition at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival where it won the Golden Bear. It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. Luminița Gheorghiu was nominated as the Best Actress at the 26th European Film Awards and the film won the Telia Film Award at the Stockholm International Film Festival 2013. The film was selected as the Romanian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated.

Andamion Murataj is a film director, screenwriter and producer living in New York, NY. He is best known for the screenplay of the feature film The Forgiveness of Blood, that he co-wrote with Joshua Marston, and after which won the Silver Bear for the Best Screenplay at the 2011 Berlin International Film Festival.

<i>Body</i> (2015 Polish film) 2015 Polish film

Body is a 2015 Polish drama film directed by Małgorzata Szumowska. It was screened in the main competition section of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival where Szumowska won the Silver Bear for Best Director. The film also received the Golden Lions Award at the 2015 Gdynia Film Festival and the People's Choice Award at the 2016 European Film Awards.

<i>Sworn Virgin</i> (film) 2015 film by Laura Bispuri

Sworn Virgin is a 2015 internationally co-produced drama film directed by Laura Bispuri. It was screened in the main competition section of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival.

<i>Hedi</i> (film) 2016 film

Hedi is a 2016 Tunisian drama film directed by Mohamed Ben Attia. It was selected to compete for the Golden Bear at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. At Berlin it won the Best First Feature Award and Majd Mastoura won the Silver Bear for Best Actor.

<i>So Long, My Son</i> 2019 film

So Long, My Son is a 2019 Chinese drama film directed by Wang Xiaoshuai. It was selected to compete for the Golden Bear at the 69th Berlin International Film Festival. At the festival, the film won the two main acting awards, with Wang Jingchun and Yong Mei winning the Silver Bear for Best Actor and Actress, respectively.

<i>I Was at Home, But</i> 2019 film

I Was at Home, But is a 2019 German drama film directed by Angela Schanelec. It was selected to compete for the Golden Bear at the 69th Berlin International Film Festival. At Berlin, Schanelec won the Silver Bear for Best Director. The film also competed at the 34th Mar del Plata International Film Festival, where Schanelec was awarded with the Silver Ástor for Best Director.

<i>The Woman Who Ran</i> 2020 film by Hong Sang-soo

The Woman Who Ran is a 2020 South Korean drama film written, produced, directed, edited and scored by Hong Sang-soo. It was selected to compete for the Golden Bear in the main competition section at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival. At Berlin, Hong Sang-soo won the Silver Bear for Best Director.

References

  1. ↑ "The Forgiveness Of Blood". Berlinale. Retrieved 20 January 2011.
  2. 1 2 "Spacey, Moore and 3D in focus at Berlin film fest". Agence France-Presse. 18 January 2011. Retrieved 18 July 2013.[ dead link ]
  3. ↑ "Prizes & Honours 2011". Berlinale. Berlin International Film Festival. 2011. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  4. ↑ Holdsworth, Nick (9 October 2011). "Albanian Oscar entry disqualified". Variety. Variety Media, LLC. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  5. ↑ Freeman, Colin (1 July 2010). "Albania's modern-day blood feuds". The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group Limited. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
  6. 1 2 "The Forgiveness Of Blood (2012)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  7. 1 2 "About The Forgiveness of Blood". IFC Films. Archived from the original on 28 October 2012. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  8. ↑ Bilefsky, Dan (10 July 2008). "In Albanian Feuds, Isolation Engulfs Families". New York Times. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.