Muristek
Hive review – Kosovan war widow dealing with sting of grief in richly intelligent film
Every shot counts in drama about woman’s fight against violent local men to survive and provide for her children in the wake of war
Blerta Basholli’s award-winning debut feature is a film about honey and also about ajvar, a sweet dish from the former Yugoslavia made from aubergines and red peppers. But the film tastes fierce and sharp, like black coffee.
It is based on the true story of Fahrije Hoti, a Kosovan woman whose husband went missing during the Balkan wars of the 90s, and so just to stay alive and provide for her children, she formed a women-only collective with all the other war widows (or presumed widows, longing for definitive news of what Serb forces did with their missing husbands) making honey and other delicacies to sell. But the film shows her facing brutal misogyny and violence from the men in her village who feel she is getting above herself. (The drama comes with a closing disclaimer emphasising that some of it is fictional, I suspect to pre-empt lawsuits.)
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