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“ACUTELY FUNNY! Characterized by a precise and sneaky formal wit…the film turns into a quiet, hilarious parody of small-scale video production.”
– A.O. Scott, The New York Times
THE MOST HILARIOUS FILM I’VE SEEN THIS YEAR. A boozy TV talk-show host in a small Romanian town leads a panel discussion on the burg’s role in the (1989) uprising…a more amateurish – and funny – affair cannot be imagined, from the inept crew to the fumbling talking heads…Porumboiu elicits remarkably deadpan performances.”
– V.A. Musetto, The New York Post
“Whether it’s part of a movement or just a singular lark, Porumboiu’s satire about history and short memories is a modest, DEADPAN MASTERPIECE. ”
– David Fear, Time Out New York
“SIMPLE, GRIPPING AND OFTEN HILARIOUS. The real story here is about the fleeting nature of truth, and of the simple nobility of even the most ridiculous of people.” – New York Magazine
“(A) WISE AND GENTLE COMEDY OF POLITICAL REALISM. The film ends with a magnificent metaphor for serene enlightenment.”
– Richard Brody, The New Yorker
“AN OFF-HAND COMIC TREAT. Deliciously dry touches…the dead-on spoof of an actual Romanian talk show, complete with shaky framing and microphone thumping, evokes a more genuine version of BORAT.”
– Steve Dollar, The New York Sun
“A deadpan comedy that evolves into a wry, politicized examination of truth… reconfirms Romania's emergence as a budding cinematic mecca.”
– Nick Schager, Slant Magazine
“Continuing the Romanian New Wave begun last year… (this) deadpan comedy looks back at the ouster of Nicolae Ceausescu through the eyes of three disagreeable men on a low-rent local TV talk show. The movie starts as a mordant slice of life, develops into a hilarious farce, and ends on a poignant note.”
– Noel Murray, The Onion
“Sadly funny. An act of daring, challenging our expectations of drama.” – Stanley Kauffmann, The New Republic
“A buoyant little comedy... in the best tradition of Eastern European humor, savvy but concrete, gentle but sharp as a knife.”
– Deborah Young, Variety
A deadpan comedy about competing memories: “Where were you?” Romanians ask one another when recalling the angry crowds who protested the 22-year reign of bizarre Stalinesque dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu in 1989 – leading to his temporary escape by helicopter and ultimately to his perfunctory execution. The whole country watched the drama unfold on live television. Sixteen years later, a TV show commemorating the glorious revolution everyone wants to take credit for, invites some guests into the studio, joined by phone-in participants, to share their conflicting recollections.
Romania • 2006 • 89 minutes • In Romanian with English subtitles • Tartan Films
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