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Macedonia, Belgium, France · 2019
1h 40m
Director Teona Strugar Mitevska
Starring Zorica Nusheva, Labina Mitevska, Stefan Vujisić, Simeon 'Moni' Damevski
Genre Drama
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Petrunya, a woman in her 30s, still lives at home with her parents and is unemployed despite a good college degree in history. After yet another failed job interview, she spontaneously inserts herself into a traditionally men-only religious ceremony and causes a stir.
God Exists, Her Name is Petrunya positions itself as a feminist cry against a patriarchal Macedonia in the grips of bullying machismo and hidebound religion, yet the genial rushed ending undercuts its gender-equality thrust by presenting Petrunya’s emotional savior as a mustachioed guy in uniform.
The Hollywood Reporter by Neil Young
There's no mistaking the earnest anger which motivates her assault on the sexist "dark ages" values still to be found in many Macedonian provincial areas, but expressing it in such clunky terms does no service to the cause.
The New York Times by Nicolas Rapold
The standoff with authorities dawdles and languishes, and a side plot with a TV journalist (Labina Mitevska) feels one-note. Still, we should all look forward to seeing what Petrunya does next.
With God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunya, Mitevska has fashioned yet another bleak satire about Hegemonic masculinity in the Balkans.
The Guardian by Peter Bradshaw
What begins as a sprightly, shrewd, visually striking satire from Macedonian director Teona Strugar Mitevska deflates in its second act into something unconvincing, sophomoric and dramatically redundant.
Petrunya is careful to maintain the ideal balance, parodying the ridiculous response to its protagonist but never downplaying its realism.
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