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Amber Garcia-Vayas
PSY 3330-01
Professor Frenda
December 5 2023
4M3W2D Review
One of the films viewed in this semesters course of Psychology Cinema is 4 Months, 3
Weeks and 2 Days directed by Cristian Mungiu. The film comes from Romania and was released
in 2007 regarding the social issues going on during the time. The movie is centered around two
girls who are university students trying to obtain an abortion in a time where it was illegal and
considered murder. This film is recorded in such a way where it feels as if the viewer is in the
film along with the girls. As gut-wrenching the experience is, it is felt so deeply from these
actors as they are displaying the characters of these girls really well. It allows the viewers to gain
an emotional connection with the character and be sucked into the film by emotional
involvement. This paper will give a perceptual, emotional, and comprehensive analysis of the
film viewed in class. Along with background information that will give an in-depth
understanding of the creation of the film.
Background
Cristian Mungiu, director of the film, used personal and social experience of restricted
women’s rights in Romania to create this film. Spreading the message of the real experience
women may go through attempting to obtain health care tending to their reproductive rights. It
highlights how far women will go and how dangerous limiting these resources is to women and
our society. These experiences used were from the time of the Communist regime that was led by
a ruler in 1965. This had impacted Romanian politics and everyday life as this had an impact on
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environments and certain laws. One of the main impacts was that there was severe censorship
and surveillance in the cities that citizens were kept in check in fear of repercussions and being
arrested. As abortion and contraceptions were considered illegal, this meant that women had to
be completely secretive regarding the illegal abortions that were being conducted. Often times
meaning they would pay in inhumane formats that were psychologically or financially damaging.
The film captures the extremity women went to get an abortion. The film also went on to receive
an award at the Cannes Film Festival in 2007 and gained attention all over the world for the
impactful movie that highlighted real experiences of women at the time.
Perceptual Analysis
The way the film is recorded is highly impactful to the way the viewers gain an
understanding and connection to the film. Specifically low level features, these features regard to
the physical aspects of the film that give the audience a real life feel. These features are minimal
to the average viewer, but when creating the film, they are important in order to be relatable and
feel “real” to the audience and not like a bad play writing. One main feature of the film is that it
is recorded by hand, such as there is a person holding the camera and it adds small movement in
the film that gives the impression to the audience that they are apart of the scene and in the room
with the characters. With a film like 4M3W2D, this is perfect to keep the viewers locked in
emotionally with the characters and sympathize with their experiences in the film. Along with
that, the shot duration in the film is long, meaning that the audience gets to look around the scene
for a long period of time giving them the illusion they know what the room looks like and as if
they are in the film as well. These two features are important when trying to film and have the
experience be shared with the audience well.
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Aside from the visual features, audio is another important aspect when reviewing a film
as it plays another important role in filming. In the background of the film, there are natural
sounds playing throughout the film such as bird noises, cars, airplanes, people talking in the
background making the film seem lively and accurate to daily life. One could say they had
ambient music and sounds in the film to highlight what was going on in the scene of the film.
Emotional Analysis
The film uses real experiences in order to relate to a certain demographic that have going
through the same experience. While also bringing awareness to the traumatizing experience that
has happened to these women. Already understanding the conversation of abortions are serious,
this film uses the worst scenario that could happen and put it into a live action film. Cristian
Mungiu uses the topic and body language to portray the emotions of the character strongly.
A theory that is displayed in the film is Sigmund Freud’s Id, Ego, and Superego theory.
This theory surrounds the behaviors of a personas decision-making process and moral influence
on the decision-making process. Such theory can be applied to the characters and how far they
were willing to take it in order to obtain the abortion. In the film, the girls had been
communicating with a man who was conducting abortions illegally, when it finally came down
to it, he made sure they paid and did what they needed to in order to conduct it. Unfortunately, it
resulted in him raping both of the girls in order for him to conduct the abortion. This could be an
example of Freud’s psychoanalytic theory as it highlights the decision-making process from the
Ego and the Superego comes out when highlight the moral aspect of the persons decision. The Id
also highlights what is the desire and end goal of the girls meaning it shows what they really
want and how oriented they are into their needs. These three aspects of the psychoanalytic theory
are seen throughout the film and give a deeper understanding on the girls and what is driving
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them to make the decisions they do when heading towards the abortion. After the abortion
happened, the girls were not on the best terms as the friend helping the girl getting the abortion,
was violated and was told it was going to be an easy process. This shows how she withheld
information in order to get what she wanted, regardless of what it would cost her roommate and
herself.
Comprehensive Analysis
Overall, the film was an amazing watch as it had the audience locked in to the experience
of the girls in the film. While comprehensively analyzing the film. It is important to view how
the characters handle the moral quandaries in a society that are oppressive to people, specifically
in this film, the girls experiencing the illegal abortion. The movie has an existential theme which
highlights the personal autonomy, accountability of actions, and challenge in hardships. These
themes are consistent throughout the film as we see the girls experience hardships with the
abortion and their ability to bounce back is incredible.
As the film was set to be in the 19080’s during the communist regime that was led by
Nicolae Ceausescu, the film highlights the political and everyday life experience of women at the
time. The film gives an in depth experience of the reproductive policies at the time and is a great
way to highlight the extent people will go and sacrifice in order to obtain something. The film
holds a tight emotional lock and I can say that even the low-level features tie the film together
perfectly as it makes the experience feel entirely real and as if the viewer is in the film as well.
The characters acted perfectly in regards to playing university girls who had to balance all that
and act as if nothing was happening. One of the main characters, Otilia, who was helping her
roommate, Gabita, get the abortion sacrificed her own body in order for her friend to be safe and
unprosecuted. The film ended up with international attention that believed it was a beautiful film
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that highlighted the experiences of women under Nicolae’s ruling and any woman who’s
reproductive rights are restricted. As it is something that is continually trying to be restricted,
even in real time as of now.
Conclusion
Overall, the film holds a deep meaning of morality and shares real life experiences to
bring awareness. Existential psychology is a traditional method of interpretation that fits with the
film and highlights the experiences endured in the film. Referencing to the scene earlier shared,
Otilia sacrificed and accepted the consequences of Gabita when trying to obtain the abortion and
found that she brought it upon herself when assisting her friend. Although existential
psychologyProvides A framework that allows the viewers to interpret the movie, it's important to
understand that different traditional methods of interpretation can offer a more in depth
understanding of the experience on the characters and decision making processes.I found that
this one could be more in touch with the overall experience of the film.The audience may find
resonance with other traditions such as psychoanalysis, which is discussed earlier, or social
psychology due to the complexity of the film.Interpretation is all into one person's mind and
personal morals. The film is a beautiful watch and as intense as it is, it is extremely important to
understand the severity of trauma these girls endured as it is based off of real-life experiences.