• Director(s)

    Agnieszka Holland

  • Production Year

    2023

  • Release date

    21/06/2024

  • Genre(s)

    Drama

  • Approx. running minutes

    152m

  • Cast

    Jalal Altawil, Maja Ostaszewska, Behi Djanati Atai

Film

Green Border

strong language, threat, violence

A group of Middle Eastern and African refugees face brutal ordeals as their search for asylum takes them to the border between Poland and Belarus in this bleak and disturbing drama about people making desperate choices.…

A group of Middle Eastern and African refugees face brutal ordeals as their search for asylum takes them to the border between Poland and Belarus in this bleak and disturbing drama about people making desperate choices.

Content Advice(May contain spoilers)

violence

threat and horror

language

sex

discrimination

drugs

sexual violence and sexual threat

injury detail

  • Director(s)

    Agnieszka Holland

  • Production Year

    2023

  • Release date

    21/06/2024

  • Genre(s)

    Drama

  • Approx. running minutes

    152m

  • Cast

    Jalal Altawil, Maja Ostaszewska, Behi Djanati Atai

strong language, threat, violence
Classified Date:
22/05/2024
Version:
2D
Use:
Cinema
Distributor:
Modern Films
violence
Asylum seekers are met with indiscriminate violence by border guards who beat them with batons and manhandle them. A Polish guard strikes a thermos flask containing water against a tree and then throws it to an unaware, desperately thirsty asylum seeker who gulps down the contents and screams in agony as he swallows the broken glass inside the flask.
threat and horror
Middle Eastern and African asylum seekers endure intense, cruel mental and physical intimidation from border guards, and those with health issues find their conditions deteriorating when denied medical assistance, as they are repeatedly shuttled across the border between Poland and Belarus, with neither country wanting to take responsibility for them. Pro-refugee activists attempt to offer help with limited resources, but are themselves threatened by the authorities over their actions. A woman and teenage boy flee from border guards, but are trapped in a forest swamp where one of them dies despite an attempted rescue.
language
There is strong language ('f**k', 'motherf**ker'), as well as milder terms such as 'bitch', 'dick', 'shit', 'bastard', 'crap', 'screw', 'jerk', 'damn', 'hell' and 'God'.
sex
There is a passing reference to bestiality material being found in in a police search. A jokey comment is made about condoms.
discrimination
A Polish border guard refers to Middle Eastern and African asylum seekers as "darkies". A Middle Eastern man talks about being accused of homosexuality in his country and how sub-judicial murder is a constant threat hanging over the gay community. Sexist comments are made about a woman's appearance. Discrimination is not endorsed by the work as a whole.
drugs
A man in psychiatric therapy admits to misusing his prescription medication.
sexual violence and sexual threat
There is a passing reference to paedophile material being found in in a police search.
injury detail
Refugees who have made arduous journeys on foot carry blisters and infected wounds. A young girl cuts her hand on barbed wire, and there is sight of dark blood. A man removes his shirt to reveal large, healed scars on his back which are implied to be the result of punishment beatings.
nudity
There is brief sight of non-sexualised breast nudity as a woman is ordered to strip by a female police officer in preparation for a full body search.
theme
There are upsetting scenes centred on bereavement and the despair of the asylum seekers who are caught up in hopeless situations, unable to find food for themselves and their young children, whilst pregnant women fear for the outcomes for their unborns. A man has a severe mental breakdown as he sits in his car. There are references to violence in conflict zones and sobering statistics are given for the mortality rates of refugees seeking asylum in Western Europe.
alcohol and smoking
There is cigarette smoking throughout.
flashing/flickering lights
This work contains flashing images which may affect viewers who are susceptible to photosensitive epilepsy.
Classified Date:
30/05/2024
Version:
2D
Use:
Cinema
Distributor:
Modern Films

  • Classified date

    22/05/2024

  • Language

    Polish