Hive

Fahrije's husband has been missing since the war. Years have passed and no body has been found; the woman counts as neither widow nor wife. She has two children and a father in law who needs care. What comes from her husband's beehives is not enough. She takes a driving licence and in this village that is a large matter; a woman driving is held to be shameful. Then she decides to make and sell pepper relish together with the wives of the other missing men. The village objects, the shops will not take the goods, and there is talk behind her back. The women go on producing. Blerta Basholli wrote and directed; it is her first feature. Yllka Gashi, Cun Lajci, Aurita Agushi and Kumrije Hoxha are in the cast. It is a Kosovar, Swiss, North Macedonian and Albanian co-production. The film rests on a true story; Fahrije Hoti of the village of Krusha e Madhe set up a cooperative with women who lost their husbands in the war and sold the ajvar they made. At the 2021 Sundance Film Festival it took the grand jury, directing and audience awards in the world cinema dramatic section at once, the first film in the festival's history to win all three. Kosovo submitted the film for the international feature award at the Oscars. The matter it treats is grief that cannot close; the families of people reported missing can complete no procedure. The film does not exaggerate the village's pressure; the people who object are frightened rather than ill intentioned. The shooting is calm; music is almost never used. Yllka Gashi plays the character with very few words. The ending gives no large victory. Its limit is pace; the narrative is slow, little happens, and the tone is muted. Who it is for: viewers who like quiet drama based on real events. Who it is not for: it is slow, sombre, and the ending measured.