"'They're afraid of us' is a line from the film. 'They' refers to us: to normal, white, affluent Europeans who live a comfortable life. And yes, it's true: we experience these feelings of insecurity and fear in this very distinctive film. BORDER is not only a very unsettling film; no, it's disturbing as well. In the deepest sense of the word, this film disturbs us: disturbs us in the comfort of our certainties and norms and convictions: what is beauty, what is normal, what does monstrosity look like, what does tenderness look like, and above all, how many wonderful but also horrible things there are all around us that we no longer notice because our senses are dulled. The main character in the wonderful film BORDER has a delicate sense of smell. We see how she inhales the rich nuances of fresh forest air and a trace of a smile darts across her face, and we see her among people whose fear she can smell, whose guilt and shame she can smell along with their crimes. And in the world of the normal, whose smooth surface conceals the horror and perverseness beneath, she is the hounded, anxious outsider and with her we get a terrifying look underneath our mask of normality and behold the grotesque face of humanity. The jury for the CineVision Award is pleased to honor BORDER, a film of deep humanity, and offers director Ali Abbasi and all who participated in the making of this wonderful film our most heartfelt congratulations."
