12:08 East of Bucharest
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Movie Reviews of 12:08 East of Bucharest
Movie Review: a delight to watch
Summary: 5 Stars
The original title of this film can be translated as Was There or Wasn't There? which is the name of the fictional TV programme in the film. Even today Romanians puzzle over this question. Was there or wasn't there a revolution in 1989, Romania? And you watch this film and you keep waiting for an answer, and waiting...and then you realise what matters is that the real/fake revolution got the ball rolling. People can now freely ask: was there or wasn't there a revolution?
12:08 East Of Bucharest is a delight to watch. Finely scripted, the dialogue is never anything less than sharp, to the point and amusing. As a viewer, I found myself going along with the three main characters (the sad old man desperate to be heard, the TV host lost in a meaningless world, the professor drowning his regrets) and feeling like they're people I've met somewhere along the way, people I could relate to. So incredible is the acting (as pointed out, by respected reviewers, the timing of the actors is immaculate) I never once doubted the scenes that I was presented with or the ideas. And what better compliment is there than that? Don't let the title put you off. Don't let the lack of publicity put you off. If you're a fan of European cinema, great cinema or original comedy you must watch 12:08 East Of Bucharest.
Bogdan Tiganov - author of The Wooden Tongue Speaks: Romanians: Contradictions and Realities
Movie Review: 12:08 East of Bucharest
Summary: 5 Stars
Excellent quality, good price, good picture quality, just what I was looking for, speedy delivery.Movie Review: Duti la dracula: or the life of a revolutionary
Summary: 4 Stars
Very decent debut. While no universal themes were broached,the film functions well as a chamber ensemble piece with occasional moments of hilarity. Still, "My Sweet Little Village" this ain't.
...beautiful and plaintive clarinet theme and the decidedly Tarkovsky-esque ending, although the lamp-post symbolism was a little heavy-handed.
It's pity the hilariously colorful swear-words, readily recognizable by any East European, were omitted in the subtitles.
...No doubt in keeping with American prudish attitudes or maybe to to avoid film rating issues.
P.S.Available for rent on Netflix.
Movie Review: 12.08 east of Bucharest
Summary: 5 Stars
The characters are richly portrayed and quite believable as colorful, local personalities. With a very small budget and cast (maybe 5-6 people?) this is independent film making at its best. At a discussion after the American premiere at Telluride, the director said that he was inspired to write 12:08 after witnessing just such a program on a local television station, also years after the fact. Very rewarding and worth investing 90 minutes for.
Movie Review: Before the "Revolution"
Summary: 4 Stars
I first saw "12:08 East of Bucharest (A fost sau n-a fost?)" last year at the International Chicago Film Festival, where I absolutely fell in love with it. I thought it was the best film I saw at the festival. Since then I have went on and on about how funny the film was. Today it opened in Chicago and I went to see it again. Some of the magic was gone after a second viewing but that probably has more to do with me then the film.
The film is the directorial debut of Corneliu Porumboiu, whom prior to this had only directed two short films. "12:08 East of Bucharest" comes on the heels of a sudden rush of interest in Romanian cinema. Last year "The Death of Mr. Lazarescu" was distributed here, which was one of my favorite films of the year, and this year the winner of the golden palm at the Cannes Film Festival was also a Romanian film entitled "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (4 luni, 3 saptamini si 2 zile)".
This film puts into question whether or not a certain town in Romania took part in the revolution on December 22nd, 1989. A local television show, hosted by Virgil Jderescu (Teodor Corban) is going to celebrate the sixteenth anniversary of that fateful day. On the show will be two guest, each of whom claim to have been there. Tiberiu Manescu (Ion Sapdaru, who appeared in one of Porumboiu's short films, "A Trip to the City" and is also in "The Paper Will Be Blue", also dealing with the Romanian Revolution) is a history teacher, with several debts, and a slight drinking problem. He says he and three other teachers showed up at the town square to protest and rejoice at the decline of dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and the end of communism.
The other guest, Emanoil Piscoci (Mircea Andreescu), known by everyone for playing Santa Clause, says he didn't show up at the town square until he saw on television there was a revolt. But each man states assuredly there was a revolt in their town.
Soon things get a little complicated as viewers call in and start to dispute with the guest. Everyone claims to have been there but no one can agree on a time they were there.
At the heart of "12:08 East of Bucharest" is a story about our collective memories and the blurry line between fact and fiction. Did a revolt happen in the town or do the residents just think it did because of the celebrating they saw on tv? Also into question is the idea of what makes a hero? When the host of the show trys to pin down one of the guest on whether he showed up before or after "12:08", the time of the revolution, the guest responds, "one trys to makes what revolution they can."
When we look at "12:08 East of Bucharest" in this light it is comparable to Bernardo Bertolucci's "The Spider's Stratagem", which was also a story about fact and fiction. Both films question history and our idea of heroes.
When I first saw this film I thought it was one of the all-time great political satires. On par with such films as "Duck Soup", "Diplomaniacs" and "Million Dollar Legs". Now after a second viewing it didn't seem as off-the-wall to me. I also thought it was one of the best Romanian films I had ever seen. Now after seeing such films as "The Death of Mr. Lazarescu" and several movies by Nicolae Margineanu, I'm not so sure about that. But despite everything "12:08 East of Bucharest" does bring up some interesting ideas. There is some substance to this story. Especially in a world with stories about Pat Tillman and Jessica Lynch. What makes a hero? Does the government ever blend fact and fiction? Is a lie ever more important then the truth?
I may not be as overcomed with joy with "12:08 East of Bucharest" as I was when I first saw it but the film still seems fresh and I did laugh at it several times. Maybe I just need to see it again...
Bottom-line: Corneliu Porumboiu's directorial debut is a fresh and funny film questioning our ideas on fact and fiction, history and heroes. It may turn out to be one of the year's best films.
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