Cristian Mungiu's feature film 'Fjord' has won the Palme d'Or at the 79th Cannes Film Festival, the event's official website announced.
The Romanian director and screenwriter thus becomes the 10th filmmaker in Cannes history to win the Palme d'Or twice - 19 years after his 2007 triumph with '4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days'. No filmmaker has ever won the award three times.
Also, the U.S. distributor Neon - which acquired rights for the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand - secured the festival's top prize for the seventh consecutive year, a streak that began with 'Parasite' in 2019.
The Romanian director returned to Cannes' main competition with the same artistic resolve that earned him the Palme d'Or in 2007 (4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days), the Best Screenplay Award in 2012 ('Beyond the Hills') and the Best Director Award in 2016 ('Graduation').
Set in Norway, 'Fjord' follows a deeply religious Romanian-Norwegian evangelical couple, played by Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve, who move with their five children into a society that prides itself on tolerance. Their apparent integration unravels when suspicions of child abuse emerge. Norwegian authorities begin scrutinizing the family's strict rules - including bans on YouTube and smartphones - and question their religious convictions. Tensions escalate until child-protection services initiate placement procedures, even targeting the newborn who is still being breastfed.
International critics have praised the film's emotional force and its exploration of child-protection dilemmas and family trauma. Le Figaro called it 'powerful and unsettling', highlighting the performances of Stan and Reinsve.
Mungiu describes 'Fjord' as a story about the difficulty of understanding those who think differently - a film about polarisation, the breakdown of dialogue, and the fragile ties that still bind people together.
Presenting the Palme d'Or, Tilda Swinton said: 'In a world growing more violent, more authoritarian, where hope is seen as a flaw and difference as a threat, this festival reaches higher.'
Before Saturday's ceremony, Fjord had already collected four major prizes at Cannes: the FIPRESCI Award, the Ecumenical Jury Prize, the François Chalais Prize, and the Prix de la Citoyenneté.
The FIPRESCI jury called the film 'a moving, tense and deeply unsettling drama' that invites viewers to consider both sides of the legal battle at its core, while reflecting the extreme climate of today's world. The Citizenship Prize jury said the film allows audiences to experience from the inside the certainties and doubts of a family confronting a society where everyone has their own reasons and beliefs.
The Ecumenical Prize Jury described 'Fjord' as 'a strong warning' about the risks of ideological drift - whether in matters of faith or in the necessary denunciation of violence against the vulnerable. When principles are reduced to rigid norms, the jurors argued, 'we lose the ability to see the humanity of others, and perhaps even our own'.
On Thursday evening, the film also received the François Chalais Prize, awarded annually to a production that embodies journalistic values. Created in 1996 in memory of the renowned reporter and filmmaker François Chalais, the prize is presented in partnership with France Télévisions and the Cannes Film Festival.
Last year's Palme d'Or went to 'It Was Just an Accident', directed by Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi.
The 79th awards ceremony took place at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, hosted by French actress Eye Haïdara. The official competition jury was chaired by South Korean director Park Chan-wook. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Florin Badescu; EN - writing by: Simona Klodnischi)
