Luminita Gheorghiu

Gil-Scott Heron once wrote "the revolution will not be televised," but one Romanian newsman attempts to put his nation's revolution on the air after the fact in this satiric comedy from writer and director Corneliu Porumboiu. It's the sixteenth anniversary of the revolt that removed Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu from power in Romania, and Jderescu (Ion Sapdaru) is the host of a televised public affairs show who wants to do a special program on the revolution. Jderescu's idea is to bring on a handful of ordinary citizens to discuss their role in Ceausescu's overthrow and how their lives have changed since Communist rule was swept from Romania. However, Jderescu can only round up two guests for his broadcast -- elderly Piscoci (Mircea Andreescu), who's more interested in playing Santa Claus for the neighborhood kids than talking politics, and Manescu (Teo Corban), a schoolteacher nursing a brutal hangover. As Jderescu tries to lead a serious discussion of how Romania has changed since Ceausescu was driven from power, the conversation wanders off on a tangent about where the revolution actually took place, and the waters become even more muddied when Jderescu opens up the phone lines for questions from viewers, most of whom have their own distinct (and strongly conflicting) memories of the Revolution . . . and one of which has a bone to pick with Manescu over some drunken insults he hurled the night before. A Fost Sau n-a Fost? (aka 12:08 East of Bucharest) received its North American premier at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Romanian filmmaker Peter Calin Netzer directs the bleak realist drama Maria, based on the true story of working-class Romanian woman Maria Tiranesi struggling to make the transition to a market economy. Played by theatrical stage actress Diana Dumbrava, Maria is a pregnant mother of six with an abusive alcoholic husband (Serban Ionescu). After he gets arrested and skips town, she is left alone with nowhere to go. Refusing an offer of a lot of money for her newborn child, Maria eventually turns to prostitution. After she tells her story to a local TV channel, the mayor gives her a job and an apartment as part of a publicity stunt. Maria won two Bronze Leopard awards at the 2003 Locarno International Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

A twenty-something willing to walk the margins of the law for the right price finds that he's on a higher tightrope than he imagined in this compelling low-budget drama from Romania. Ovidiu (Alexandru Papadopol) is a young man with an entrepreneurial bent who is trying to launch a business selling snack food while still living in his parent's flat in Constanta. Needing cash to get his business off the ground, Ovidiu is more than willing to listen when he's approached by a local crime boss. It seems the mobster has a package that he needs delivered to Bucharest, and he's willing to pay Ovidiu a healthy wad of cash to do the job. Ovidiu isn't sure what's in the package (and is smart enough not to ask), but he figures it's an easy way to make some fast money, so he packs up his van and hits the road, with his girlfriend (Ioana Flora) and another pal (Dragos Bucur) tagging along for company. Assuming they're carrying some sort of contraband, Ovidiu and his friends have to steer clear of police cars and check points along the way, but before long the law is the least of Ovidiu's worries when he discovers that a red car is following them -- and the four men inside are determined not to be shaken. Marfa Si Banii was enthusiastically received in its screening at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This Romanian family drama examines a modern family in turmoil as it is ripped asunder by social and economic problems caused by the demise of Communism. The film is set in a grim little burg on the Danube, 100 miles northeast of Bucharest. Fane, the main character, has just been fired from his factory job. He cannot find work, so begins to hit the bars. He also hangs out with his friends, former freedom fighters, out in the country. Fane's teenage daughter Vali wants to study in Bucharest; she works nights and saves her money. Nilu, his youngest son, has just joined a gang. The eldest brother Viorel discovers that Vali is earning money by hooking in a trashy bar, he destroys the place. He is sent to jail. Vali and Nilu take off for the capital. Fane tries to organize a strike against the factory bosses. The results are tragic. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide