Beginning
A severe Georgian drama follows a religious leader’s wife as extremist violence exposes the fractures beneath her carefully ordered provincial life.
Overview
A woman's world unravels as her community faces violent extremism, forcing her to confront her deepest desires.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Slow
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- austere
- oppressive
- contemplative
- serious film night
- festival cinema viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as a rigorously directed, psychologically intense Georgian drama with exceptional performances and a strikingly austere style.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Yana's disintegrating inner life and the town's religious conflict unfold through patient, extended scenes rather than explanatory exposition.
Yana is the wife of a Jehovah's Witness leader, while her growing dissatisfaction centers on desires that challenge the familiar religious order.
The film's controlled direction and severe atmosphere turn ordinary provincial spaces into emotionally threatening environments.
Critics explicitly compared Kulumbegashvili's direction to Cristi Puiu, Cristian Mungiu, and the Romanian New Wave's treatment of sleeping rage.
Films like Beginning, and why
The White Ribbon
austere psychological drama, institutional pressure, and controlled compositions that expose suppressed rage
4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
Romanian New Wave-adjacent realism, moral tension, and emotionally punishing observation of social institutions
The Silence
minimalist rural drama, spiritual unease, and a woman’s constrained inner life rendered through patient observation
Movie Details
- Director
- Dea Kulumbegashvili
- Release Date
- 2020-12-04
- Runtime
- 126 min
- Rating
- 5.8 / 10 (51)
Cast
- Ia Sukhitashvili
- Rati Oneli
- Kakha Kintsurashvili
- Saba Gogichaishvil
- Giorgi Tsereteli
- Ia Kokiashvili
- Mari Kopchenovi
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Beginning about?
- A severe Georgian drama follows a religious leader’s wife as extremist violence exposes the fractures beneath her carefully ordered provincial life.
- What is Beginning like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Beginning as slow, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Beginning violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Beginning as graphic.
- What did critics think of Beginning?
- Critics broadly praised the film as a rigorously directed, psychologically intense Georgian drama with exceptional performances and a strikingly austere style.
- Which films are like Beginning?
- Films with a similar feel include The White Ribbon, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, and The Silence.
- How long is Beginning?
- Beginning runs 126 minutes.
- Where can I watch Beginning?
- In United States, Beginning streams on MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel.
