Honeyland  (86 minutes)

Honeyland is a visually breathtaking documentary that plays out with the narrative tension of an epic drama. Set in a deserted Macedonian mountain village, the film follows Hatidze Muratova, one of Europe’s last wild beekeepers. Operating by a strict, sustainable code—”take half, leave half”—she lives a quiet, harmonious life caring for her blind mother and her hives.

This fragile ecosystem is upended when a chaotic nomadic family moves in next door. Driven by financial desperation, they ignore Hatidze’s wisdom, leading to devastating consequences for the local bee population.

Filmmakers Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov spent three years capturing this story, crafting a stunningly intimate look at environmental balance and human greed. Honeyland is a poetic, heartbreaking masterclass in storytelling that delivers an urgent, universal warning about what happens when we take more than nature can afford to give.

The opening minutes of Honeyland are as astonishing — as sublime and strange and full of human and natural beauty — as anything I’ve ever seen in a movie.  – The New York Times

Full review: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/honeyland-2019