"Morina's small, well-made picture could use the higher profile brought by an awards win, because it probably can't otherwise preen for attention through controversy or hot-take-friendly subject matter. That's not to suggest that it's alienating or difficult; in fact, it's probably more accessible than your average superhero movie, because it's about two universally understood concepts. (You get one guess as to what those concepts might be.)"
"They reside with Shaban's mother (Kumrije Hoxha) and his brother Agim (Abdinaser Beka), a schoolteacher - one big, seemingly happy family, crowded around a dinner table. When the youngest brother Liridon (Tristan Halilaj) comes around asking for 1800 Euros so he can move to Germany for a job, the family mostly ignores him; Liridon, it seems, has a reputation as a deadbeat. After one contentious confrontation, however, the younger brother disappears - and so do the family cows."
Shame and Money follows Shaban, his wife Hatixhe, extended family, and their dairy cows on a small Kosovar farm until theft of the cows forces relocation to Pristina. Economic precarity drives Shaban into day labor and dependence on relatives in the city while the family copes with crowded living and uncertain income. Younger brother Liridon's disappearance and the loss of livestock catalyze migration pressures, debt, and emotional strain. The film emphasizes hyper-realistic portrayals of daily survival, barter economies, and the psychological toll of financial instability, presenting an accessible, empathetic perspective on migration and urban hardship.
Read at Vulture
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