Four stars (NR)

The winner of the Palm D’Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival is a harrowing tale of an illegal abortion in 1987 Romania, shot in such a realistic style that the production almost feels like a documentary. Otilia (Anamaria Marinca) has agreed to help her friend Gabita (Laura Vasiliu) arrange for the procedure and the film follows every step, from securing a hotel room to haggling with the abortionist (Vlad Ivanov) to disposing of the fetus. Writer/director Cristian Mungiu does a remarkable job at putting the viewer into the film, employing hand-held cameras and long, unbroken takes to increase the twitchy factor. 113 minutes. DVD INFO: Includes a documentary.