Murina

Directed by Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović (Croatia, 2021, 96 min.). Croatian, English, and Spanish with English subtitles.

On a sun-soaked island on Croatia’s Adriatic coast, 17-year-old Julija spends her days diving for eel (or murina) with her domineering father, Ante, and watching other teens party on a nearby yacht. She longs to leave the island and get a college education, but is unsure how to escape her father’s grasp—until the arrival of the rich and mysterious Javier seems to offer a way out. Soaring, ominous, and breathlessly suspenseful, this Winner of the Golden Camera cinematography award at the Cannes Film Festival was lensed by cinematographer Hélène Louvart (The Lost Daughter; Never Rarely Sometimes Always), and Executive Produced by Martin Scorsese, and features a ferocious, star-making central performance by Gracija Filipović. Equal parts fiery feminist outcry and stirring coming-of-age drama, the film announces director Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović as a major new talent in world cinema.

“An exceptional debut.... Makes the case that a young girl’s passage into adulthood can be the perfect, darkly dazzling vehicle for a sunshine noir.” —Variety

Watch the trailer.