A devastating fire in the Bucharest club Colectiv in 2015 killed 27 people and injured 180. Over the weeks that followed, victims with serious injuries were treated at Romanian hospitals, but the death toll grew—37 more individuals died, succumbing not to the severity of their burns, but to infection. Collective follows an intrepid team of journalists at the Sports Gazette who uncover a conspiracy involving diluted medical disinfectant that reaches from the product manufacturers and distributors to hospital managers and government officials. In stunning cinema verité, filmmaker Alexander Nanau traces the journalists’ damning discoveries, their outright rejection of the government’s attempts to misrepresent the facts, and the personal risks involved. When the health minister resigns amid the ensuing scandal, Nanau also begins following his replacement; as the new official attempts to reform the system, he exposes the corruption and web of deceit from inside the government as well. Harrowing recordings and incriminating testimony offer a searing indictment of officials who prioritized money over human lives in this unforgettable film about those who put everything on the line to bring the truth to light.  ST