12:08 East of Bucharest

More of an exercise than a full realized film, but fascinating nonetheless. Most of the film is staged as an awkward televised debate with scholars squirming in their seats and fumbling with paper as a series of callers challenge their assertions. There is an audacity in this simplicity and the faith that ideas and conflicted personalities can carry a film. It also offers a view of the overwhelming gray of an eastern European city, where every surface is the color of a well-trod sidewalk.

This has the gritty realism central to the Romanian New Wave, a slow burn, and political subject matter. I never expected to laugh out loud during the lengthy live broadcast scene. A lot of things about this are definitely overdone: Ion Sapdaru's guilt-ridden acting, the cameraman's glitches, the nervous paper-tearing gag. It's an uncomplicated satire, a little roughly cut, but still ably written and quite funny.

Ceva tot a fost.

May 12, 2019 / Forget

"12:08 East of Bucharest" was an interesting look into the lives of three people who are trying to understand what it means to be apart of the revolution 16 years prior. The film was acted and shot well, and explored themes about the spreading of ideas, what it means to protest, & memory. I got a lot from watching this movie.

The first half hour sets the tone and got a few small laughs from me, but it was once the three main characters got together that the film really explodes. It's pretty damn dark, and still manages to be hilarious with a mix of little sight gags, verbal repartee and an unending stream of criticism, both direct and indirect people petty vices.

My favorite Romanian comedy (there are so few good ones, unfortunately). Porumboiu stages a local TV broadcast on the occasion of the Romanian revolution (very near Christmas) and uses the 3 small town characters to explore and mock the broader attitudes us Romanians have about that event. It's also incredibly funny, and incredibly sad, which is always great.

A comedy seemingly bereft of jokes

Star Rating: ★★★1/2

Cannes'da gösterilmiş olması ve son dönemde zirveye oynayan Romanya ismini yanyana duyunca heyecanla izleyip, filmin sonunda hayal kırıklığına uğradığım bir film oldu.

What is history? This movie addresses this great question in a very accessible way, with subtle links between the different parts of the movie. Lots of laughs, but the pacing is a little bit slow.

Almost exactly half-way through the film there is a scene where two characters sit awkwardly while a third character rambles on about nothing in order to appear clever. I could identify with them. The film can be amusing, and I imagine there are many jokes that are fantastic if you're Romanian, but, like its news anchor, it struggles to get to the point.

some good laughs

"A deadpan comedy that evolves into a wry, politicized examination of truth." - Nick Schager

Flawlessly written, brilliantly economical "gray comedy" (apologies and kudos to the reviewer below who coined that) about the snowball effect of human pettiness and the chaos that ensues when we examine our most cherished illusions too closely. Fantastic performances by all three lead actors. Love the cinematography; despite its extreme staticness, the camera always seems to be just where it should be. Great example of the knack of former Eastern Bloc filmmakers for making the bleak beautiful.

It helps to get a lecture from a scholar on Romanian film about it. There's a lot of heart to what is a very funny, deceptively complex film. Good filmmaking.

This was supposed to be a comedy too, right? I definitely found a few parts funny, but as a whole the movie was more clever than humorous. And it was definitely a clever script, so no bones to pick there. The cinematography is beautiful. It was refreshing to see a -- for lack of a better word -- artistic comedy, because I don't see that many of those since comedies focus more on the laughs than anything else (with good reason, y'know).

very funny and a reminder of our pettiness

exceptionally original script, hilarious in general.

A delightful film that subtly contextualizes its comedic moments later in the film by suggesting certain realities about the town in the slower, but in some ways more interesting, first half. I also loved the bookend scenes of the town's lights going off and on.

There's a lot of funny moments to be had, and given the drab tones of the photography, I'd call it a "gray comedy". However, I always struggle with Eastern European political allegories, and I wasn't sure what the message was. It seemed to say that everyone recalls the events differently, and perhaps it's more important to simply carry on with life. The movie didn't really grab me that much, but it was amusing and a fairly pleasant way to pass 80 minutes.

A hilarious film, hilarious in a way unlike Hollywood films. A good example of great minimalist filmmaking.

The first half is decent, but nothing special (Dare I say boring?), but once the studio sequence starts, the film becomes absolutely hysterical.

Not of interest to people outside of Romenia (or East-block), with exception of exotic viewing during a filmfest.