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God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunija

Play trailer Poster for God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunija Released Jun 25, 2021 1h 40m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
82% Tomatometer 33 Reviews 62% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
In Stip, a small town in Macedonia, every January the local priest throws a wooden cross into the river and hundreds of men dive after it. Good fortune and prosperity are guaranteed to the man who retrieves it. This time, Petrunya dives into the water on a whim and manages to grab the cross before the others. Her competitors are furious -- how dare a woman take part in their ritual? All hell breaks loose, but Petrunya holds her ground. She won her cross and will not give it up.

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God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunija

God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunija

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Critics Consensus

God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunya approaches serious topics from a satirical angle, with largely praiseworthy results.

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Critics Reviews

View All (33) Critics Reviews
Nicolas Rapold New York Times The director, Teona Strugar Mitevska, draws on actual events for this good-humored story of occupation and resistance. Jun 24, 2021 Full Review Garry Maddox Sydney Morning Herald It's a story inspired by a real event that is given a quirky satirical treatment by Macedonian director Teona Strugar Mitevska. Aug 2, 2019 Full Review Jay Weissberg Variety 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... Feb 12, 2019 Full Review Witney Seibold Critically Acclaimed Podcast 'Petrunya' cuts off before it arrives at any sort of meaningful climax, but the events depicted along the way highlight the meaninglessness of institutional misogyny. Oct 7, 2021 Full Review Gisela Savdie Letra Urbana The film depicts a society organized in a very misogynistic way [Full review in Spanish] Jul 18, 2021 Full Review Avi Offer NYC Movie Guru A well-acted, but lethargic and underwhelming story that fails to pack an emotional or intellectual wallop. Rated: 5.781348/10 Jun 29, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (3) audience reviews
Audience Member this movie is blasphemy, god can't be a woman or gay 🤬🙏 Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 01/24/23 Full Review brent m Taking on an entrenched, centuries-old social, religious and political patriarchy is no easy feat, but the protagonist in director Teona Strugar Mitevska's latest offering unwittingly does just that. Set in the small Macedonian community of Stip, a discouraged, unemployed, single, plus-sized, thirty-something spinster who still lives with her parents becomes the unlikely center of attention when she impulsively participates in and wins a traditional male-only competition, inciting claims of impropriety, invoking civil unrest and theft of a religious icon (with no legal basis for backing up any of the charges, despite inflated vague allegations that she broke "the rules"). While the film crackles with biting satire and delivers an important and empowering message for women, it tends to get bogged down in repetitive, circular arguments at times, making the picture come across as somewhat heavy-handed and dogmatic (at least to viewers who reside in more tolerant and open-minded societies). But, then, for a culture that has long fought against progressive social change, perhaps such a sledgehammer approach is what's needed to get the message across to those who have staunchly resisted it and used whatever means available to them to reinforce such an archaic view. To many, it might seem that films like this should no longer be necessary in this day and age, but the fact that it was made suggests the opposite and that there's yet more work to be done. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member A religious feminist wants to break the patriarchal ceiling of the Macedonian Orthodox Church. The film, short on dialogue, long on symbolism, succeeds to a point. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/25/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunija

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Movie Info

Synopsis In Stip, a small town in Macedonia, every January the local priest throws a wooden cross into the river and hundreds of men dive after it. Good fortune and prosperity are guaranteed to the man who retrieves it. This time, Petrunya dives into the water on a whim and manages to grab the cross before the others. Her competitors are furious -- how dare a woman take part in their ritual? All hell breaks loose, but Petrunya holds her ground. She won her cross and will not give it up.
Director
Teona Strugar Mitevska
Producer
Marie Dubas, Labina Mitevska, Sébastien Delloye
Screenwriter
Elma Tataragic, Teona Strugar Mitevska
Distributor
1844 Entertainment
Production Co
Sister and Brother Mitevski, Vertigo, Entre Chien et Loup
Genre
Drama
Original Language
Macedonian
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 25, 2021, Limited
Runtime
1h 40m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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