TIFF REVIEW: BY KURT MORRISON

SEPTEMBER 11, 2026

3.5 OUT OF 5 STARS

Fresh off its win of the Palme D’Or at the Cannes Film Festival back in May, writer-director Cristian Mungiu brings Fjord to the opening day of the Toronto International Film Festival and this without a question of a doubt is the film both the critics and general movie going audience here are talking about. 

Based on true events, the film centers around the Gheorghiu family, who have moved from Romania back to a remote village in Norway where Lisbet, wife to Mihai and mother to their five beautiful children - grew up. Mihai and Lisbet are devout Christians and routinely attend church with their family, partake in nightly bible study with their children and refuse to let their kids do many of the ‘societal norms’ that other kids participate in. No Top 40 Music, Dancing, Youtube, Video Games, Cell Phones. None of it. The Halberg family, who are their neighbors, seem cautiously optimistic about The Gheorghius but openly seem critical of the family’s steadfast Christian roots. But the town is far too small for such news not to spread and such begins to spread like wildfire that the children do not have ‘an ordinary upbringing’.

Once the characterizations of the Gheorghius and the townspeople are established, writer/director Mungiu dives right into the central dispute - in which Mihai and Lisbet lose custody of their five children after one of their girls ends up with bruises on her neck and back, which is noticed by one of her teachers. Thus a spiral of controversial topics, where progressive societal norms vs conservative religious teachings on parenting, discipline and safety become the crux and incredibly thought-provoking groundwork for the films remaining two hour runtime.

The film is undoubtedly anchored by two of the year's best performances, both of which are very different from one another. Sebastian Stan’s portrayal of Mihai is both placid but brooding in the opening act, which then turns into a state of manic verbal impulsivity meets downright frustration. The last few years have really given Stan an opportunity to shine intra and post-Marvel, showing off his acting chops and it’s easy to say that this is one of his best performances alongside 24’s The Apprentice and A Different Man.

Renate Reinsve does quietly calibrated work as Lisbet, a woman whose compliance never reads as simple passivity: she absorbs each of Mihai's pronouncements with a flicker of private calculation before falling into step behind him. That subordination is the design rather than a flaw, since Lisbet is built to recede inside Sebastian Stan's patriarchal Mihai, and Reinsve makes the receding itself legible, letting us watch a woman shrink into the role her marriage and her faith have assigned her.

Folks, I have been sitting here for well over two hours writing this review and discussing central topics and themes, and Fjord has become the most thought and conversation invoking film I have experienced in 2026. Let me preface all of the next part of the review by saying this. I grew up in a catholic education setting, and have pushed myself far away from it as I have grown older. I have friends and family who are still very devout Catholics or Christians, and there are things that I do differently from them when it comes to parenting my own child……. but that doesn’t mean that they are wrong and I am right in my ways.

At the heart of it, Fjord seemingly starts by aiming to villainize archaic Christian beliefs by putting us in the seat of the Norwegian court system and Children’s aid group who are looking to protect the Gheorghiu children’s wellbeing not only physically but somewhat intellectually. And hey, even I can admit there are bits and pieces of Mihai and Lisbet’s Christian parenting that I do not agree with…….. but once again, and I must say it…. that doesn’t mean that they are wrong.

Mungiu does an excellent job at allowing us to empathize with Mihai and Lisbet, because they are only ever portrayed as stern, strict but loving. We never see them physically assault their children out of anger or rage, only impulse by Lisbet in the first ten minutes of the film that becomes the foundation for the argument. There is never any evidence that they are the monsters they are made out to be by the Norwegian courts. So it begs the questions, which I think is actually the STRONGEST aspect of the entire film - who are we to judge other people’s parenting styles? Why does a court and complete strangers get to be judge, jury and executioner on the roots of a family and their structure just because it does not align with something they think is inappropriate.

I could talk endlessly about this film and am shocked at how much I have come around to it in the last 24 hours, because leaving the theatre I was very meh. But a film like this is a phenomenal example of the medium sparking intrigue, cogitation that forces you to put yourself into a different mindset both religiously and intellectually. Fjord is bound to be an awards season contender and I hope it is on both the acting fronts and international feature category because albeit it being a tough watch, it is a thought provoking one that feels very well timed.