Directed by an established European filmmaker, Gianina Cărbunariu, My Beloved Enemy explores the polarisation of society, the desire for understanding and the disappearing dialogue. How do Romanians, whose history carries its own traumas and stereotypes, perceive the Slovak reality?

 

Christmas dinner was to be a celebration of the upcoming baptism of a child. A young couple organises a meeting of their parents for the first time and also introduces the future godparents. However, the man who is to become the godfather is as yet unknown even to the father of the child himself. At one point, his brother appears at the table with a secret. The rule about not discussing politics is disappearing faster than Christmas cakes. The Romanian Revolution, emigration, labour, morality - every topic turns into a battlefield. Words dig deep; old fears and new prejudices rise to the surface.

 

The past slips into the present: the ghosts of Elena Ceaușesco or Elizabeth Báthory appear in the darkness as symbols of power, guilt and historical fears. Who is the enemy today? Cărbunariu provides a humorous and sharp but empathetic view of social conflicts and asks whether we can still have a real dialogue.