22 November- 6 December

The Ruined Map (1968)-4/10->It nails an original atmosphere, but The Ruined Map is too incoherent and some moments are either too complex or either too stupid to understand.

Moara Cu Noroc (1955)-7/10->One of the few good adaptations of Romanian literature from that period, Moara Cu Noroc has good acting and a good script which respects the source material, but in my opinion it could have been bigger.

Something In The Air (2012)-8/10-> A powerful film, Assayas's latest is a beautiful piece on the French student movement of the early '70s.

More Than Honey (2012)-5/10->It's too slow and light,but otherwise More Than Honey is a good documentary.

The Details (2012)-5.5/10->A bit inconsistent, but otherwise The Details achieves its' black comedy standard, by becoming more shocking (not necessarily funny) as it goes along. And Maguire is a damned good pick for this role.

L'Enfer (1994)-4.5/10->Unexpectedly predictable and common, L'Enfer works as an OK film about jealousy with a good performance from Cluzet and that's it.

Gerry (2002)-8/10->It's very slow, but ultimately worth it.

EFA 2012: The Films and The Awards

Best Film

Winner: 

Amour

Nominees: 

• Barbara
• Cesare Deve Morire
• Jagten
• Shame 
• Intouchables

Did the winner deserve its' award? : Sure, "Amour" is pure cinema.

The other nominees : Except "Barbara", I didn't like any other film from the nominees for Best Film. I really hated "Intouchables" and the others aren't that bad, but they aren't that good either.

Omissions? : The biggest one is Benedek Fliegauf's "Just The Wind" (which is my favorite film of this year so far) and Paradise:Love.

Best Director

Winner:

Amour

Nominees:

• Once Upon A Time In Anatolia
• Shame
• Jagten
• Cesare Deve Morire

Did the winner deserve its' award? : Seeing the other nominees, yes. Seeing the fact that it also got Best Film, no.

The other nominees : Weak, weak competition for Haneke. I don't even see how "Anatolia" is still eligible.

Omissions? : I stand with the first two films I said in the first category. But I would also add "Holy Motors".

Best Actor

Winner:

Jean-Louis Trintignant for Amour

Nominees:

• Francois Cluzet & Omar Sy for Intouchables
• Michael Fassbender for Shame
• Mads Mikkelsen for Jagten
• Gary Oldman for Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

Did the winner deserve its' award? : Tough competition for Trintignant. But, yes, he gives one of the most compelling roles of the year.

The other nominees : Good actors giving good performances.

Omissions? : Yes. Schoenaerts for "Rust & Bone", Serban Pavlu for "Everybody in Our Family" and Denis Lavant for "Holy Motors".

Best Actress

Winner:

Emmanuelle Riva for Amour

Nominees:

• Emilie Dequenne for Our Children
• Nina Hoss for Barbara
• Margarethe Tiesel for Paradise:Love
• Kate Winslet for Carnage

Did the winner deserve its' award? : I liked Tiesel more, but Riva was just fine.

The other nominees : Good nominees, excepting Winslet.

Omissions? : Lola Creton for "Apres Mai" and Olga Dihovichnaya for "Twilight Portrait".

European Screenwriter

Winner:

Jagten

Nominees:

• Amour
• Carnage
• Intouchables
• Beyond The Hills

Did the winner deserve its' award? : The script is good, but not great.

The other nominees : "Amour" and "Beyond The Hills" are alright, "Carnage" is much lighter than it should be and "Intouchables" is atrocious.

Omissions? : "Just The Wind", "The Exchange" by Eran Kolirin, "Tabu" by Miguel Gomes and "Apres Mai" by Olivier Assayas.

Carlo Di Palma European Cinematographer Award

Winner:

Shame

Nominees:

• Faust
• Once Upon A Time In Anatolia
• Amour
• Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy

Did the winner deserve its' award? : Yes, the second best part about "Shame" is the cinematography.

The other nominees : "Once Upon A Time In Anatolia" and "Faust" are the most dazzling here, but "Amour" and "TTSS" aren't half bad either.

Omissions? : I don't know if they're eligible, but my favorites for 2012 are "Laurence Anyways" and "Post Tenebras Lux".

European Film Academy Animated Feature Film

Winner:

Alois Nebel

Nominees:

• The Pirates! In An Adventure With Scientists
• Arrugas 

Did the winner deserve its' award? : No, the film is beautiful visually, but otherwise it's a mess.

The other nominees : Well there's not much of a competition here. "Arrugas" is fine, haven't seen "The Pirates!" yet.

Omissions? : Haven't seen any good animations this year.

European Film Academy Short Film

Winner:

Superman, Spiderman or Batman

Nominees:

• The Ambassador & Me
• Back Of Beyond
• Beast
• How To Pick Berries
• In The Open
• Morning Of Saint Anthony's Day
• Objection VI
• Out Of Frame
• Silent
• Tomorrow It Will Be Good
• Two Hearts
• Two Ships
• Villa Antropoff

Did the winner deserve its' award? : Yes, of course. Not only this one of the best Romanian shorts I've seen this year along with "From Now On",  but one of the best shorts I've seen this year.

The other nominees : I have seen only a few of them; "How To Pick Berries" is pretty, "Morning Of Saint Anthony's Day" is weird,but good, I didn't get "Out Of Frame", "Silent" is a nicely done love story and "Villa Antropoff" is a funny critique on modern society.

Omissions? : No, not really.

(the categories I haven't commented are either the ones I haven't seen nothing from, or the ones I don't really know what to say about)

9-22 November

Magnolia(1999)-9/10->Overlong and a bit messy? Sure, but the whole complexity of the narrative and how it's wound together make up for that. Also,the cast is excellent, maybe one of the most impressive American casts to ever come together onto the screen.

Belle Toujours(2006)-7.5/10->While it does have the pace of the predecessor (and that's a flaw more or less), Belle Toujours shows us the point of view of the best, but neglected character from Bunuel's film, having a great script, filled with terrific dialogues.

Everyday(2012)-7/10->It's slow and predictable,but this is a very realistic, emotional and up front observation of a family.

POLA X(1999)-10/10->POLA X is definitely Carax's masterpiece,a strange,intense and dense film,starting as one film and ending up as a completely different.Excellent,but completely underrated.

Tokyo(2008)-5/10->Gondry takes too long to get to his overly cliched point,Carax serves up a plate of his usual bat-shit crazy originality and Joon-ho starts off with a great idea,but he goes into schmaltzy predictableness.

Lawless(2012)-2.5/10->Messy,not as well acted as it should be and it's more lifeless than the subject actually is.The pros are the ending and the cinematography.

In Another Country(2012)-7/10->A quirky and light film,"In Another Country" benefits mostly from Huppert's triple performance.

The Fly(1986)-5.5/10->Goldblum gives a great performance and Cronenberg succeeds in making the audience emphatize with its' characters,but it is too gory for its' own good.You either make a horror story or a love story.

Compliance(2012)-9/10->Tensionate,convincingly acted and minutely directed,Zobel brings out the sinister in the story and though he doesn't show us a lot,it shocks us with the gripping suspense and actions of the characters.

12 October-8 November

Killer Joe(2011)-7.5/10->A proper revival for Friedkin, this crazy and violent film shows McConaughey in his most convicing and absorbing role so far. Completely insane, completely worth it.

On The Road(2012)-5/10->Salles manages to nail most of the atmosphere of the book and the cinematography is great, but the characters and the film itself never are as daring or as open-minded as the terrific source material.

Berlin Calling(2008)-6.5/10->Starts off great,sending the audience an unique vibe and Kalkbrenner is fantastic (as an actor and as a musician), but it feels dull in some moments.

The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford(2007)-8/10->It's slow, but the runtime allows Dominik to properly build his characters and it gives the film a very contemplative and unsettling air (which Deakins helps to build), driven from classic westerns. Great performances from Pitt and Affleck.

Sin City(2005)-6/10->Beautifully violent and it contains some great moments of violent poetry. Fun,but rarely smart.

Something From Nothing:The Art Of Rap(2012)-6/10->It's nicely wound together, but the rappers should be aloud to speak more. Way too short in my opinion.

Mr. Nice(2010)-3/10->Has a great first half hour, but the acting and the cinematography are bad, and it never fully extents its' great plot.

Savages(2012)-4/10->Savages is often incoherent and tangled, the ending is bad and the film is way too long (like all Stone films), but the acting is amiable and it's sometimes refreshing to see Stone hasn't lost his talent of making fun, violent movies,which he showcased in "Natural Born Killers".

The Bay(2012)-6/10->It's not scary, the so-called scares being gruesome and very few, but The Bay relies more on suspense and originality of the story and outcome than most found-footage flicks.

The Watch(2012)-3/10->Rarely funny, relying mostly on dick jokes, but the cast helps the movie not ending up useless.

Mauvais Sang(1986)-10/10->A beautiful and unique film, Mauvais Sang is an original combination of Melville's suspense and poetry and Kubrick's imagination.

Rust And Bone(2012)-7/10->Cotillard doesn't do too much, it's often predictable, but Schoenaerts is fantastic, the ending is good and the camera work is terrific.

Ils(2006)-5.5/10->A chilling horror, Ils is a tense and scary film, with an unpredictable outcome, which will make the viewer shake in its' seat. 

Belle De Jour(1967)-6/10->A bit too passionless and dull for its' own good, Belle De Jour works mostly because of Deneuve's acting and charm.Also, Piccoli is a treat.

Les Films de Cannes A Bucarest:3rd edition 2012

Reality(2012)-4/10->Although the first part of the film is generic,at least it's energetic,but in the second part it loses its' energy and it becomes almost as absent-minded as reality television itself.Shame,for this is a great subject.

Gomorra(2008)-8.5/10->A bleak and unbelievably realistic film,Gomorra is a thorough portrait of the "Camorra".

Like Someone In Love(2012)-3/10->Great acting,but the whole film is lifeless and feels pointless.Also,the ending is really,really bad.

Holy Motors(2012)-8/10->The first half hour feels like a warmup and there's not much of a link between all of the "tasks",but Lavant proves once again he's a versatile actor and Carax proves once again that he's a genius,showing us that cinema is not dead.

Killing Them Softly(2012)-7/10->The first hour is great,the script is almost fantastic and the cast is terrific (especially Gandolfini),but in the last hour it feels like Dominik doesn't know how to get the film to its' end.Not saying that the ending scene isn't brilliant.

Ciulinii Baraganului(1958)-4/10->Though it starts off great,it was never a good idea to turn a 40 page novel into a two hour film.

Beasts Of The Southern Wild(2012)-8.5/10->Emotional and heart-warming,BOTSW is very childish,but beautifully told (and shot) and really imaginative.

Moonrise Kingdom(2012)-8/10->It's not very different from Anderson's previous work,but it still is a compassionate look at first love and childhood.Beautifully shot and the soundtrack is amazing.

Cosmopolis(2012)-2/10->There is some style,but otherwise Cronenberg bets on his dialogue.Not a good bet,because the film is tedious and the only cause is the unengaging dialogue.Mediocre acting,all around.

The Time That Remains(2009)-5.5/10->The deadpan humor is original,the acting is good and the cinematography is beautiful,but the film's narrative is farfetched.

Post Tenebras Lux(2012)-7/10->Much more complex than his previous work,Reygadas's latest will have you questioning yourself most of the time.Didn't understand it completely,but there's something about it for sure.Would give it an award for its' cinematography.

White Elephant(2012)-4/10->The acting is alright,but it's too damn predictable.

In The Fog(2012)-7/10->It's too long and Loznitsa has still got some problems with his narrative line,but it's beautifully shot,the acting is good and it comes together much more nicely than My Joy.

The Angels' Share(2012)-4/10->Unfunny and it seems like Ken Loach hasn't made something worth watching since "Looking For Eric".

Despues De Lucia(2012)-2/10->Works on a very simple system: (daughter does something bad,father cries about his dead wife/his daughter) x 20. Literally unwatchable.

Beyond The Hills(2012)-6.5/10->Overlong and the performance by Flutur isn't as great as it could be (most of the film she squirms), but it sends its' message about faith and just how far it can go,Stratan is very good and as always the camera work by Oleg Mutu is fantastic.

Anim'est International Animation Film Festival 2012:7th Edition

FEATURES

Arrugas(2011)-7/10->Arrugas is a fresh approach of the elder years,funny and sad,but even though the pace of the film helps the atmosphere,it still is quite slow.

Alois Nebel(2011)-5.5/10->The animation and tone of the film are very special,but the writing is a bit too thin.

The Lorax(2012)-5/10->The Lorax is beautifully told and it captures most of Seuss's spirit,except it's simplicity,that being lost in the unexpectedly Hollywood-ian elements.

Ronal The Barbarian(2011)-4/10->Ronal The Barbarian is funny,but it's predictable and most of the humor relies on gross-out gags.

Children Who Chase Lost Voices(2011)-6/10->It has an imaginative story and beautiful animation,but it borrows heavily from Japanese animation helmers like Kon or Miyazaki.

SHORTS

ROMANIAN COMPETITION

The Mobilphone(2012)-6/10->Concise,but light,The Mobilphone has intelligent humor.

Selfportrait(2012)-5/10->it has a good idea,but it doesn't make the most of it.

Face Factory(2012)-5/10->Predictable,but funny and the ending is somewhat smart.

Gang Up On Cupid(2012)-1/10->More of a ripoff of "Space Invaders" than a short,really.

The Envelope(2012)-6.5/10->Smart,but a bit too morbid for it's own good.

Metarmorphosis(2012)-1/10->An unfunny take on Kafka's novel.

Free(2011)-5/10->Some humourous moments can't make up for bad animation.

Cry In The Sky(2012)-1/10->A bad poem.

Playground(2011)-1/10->Predictable outcome and message.

Cloudman(2012)-1/10->Plain dumb.

Precious Thing(2012)-1/10->Weird and sinister,and the animation is horrible.

The Story Of Ipsum(2012)-2/10->Starts off interesting,but it becomes an incoherent jumble.

Super(2012)-1/10->Didn't understand this one.

Chinatown(2012)-1/10->This one either.

Bicycle Love(2012)-1/10->A bad idea to begin with.

Unarte(2012)-2/10->It has a good premise,but otherwise the animation is really bad,and it doesn't work too well as a commercial for that college.

Hunger(2010)-7/10->Hunger is smartly animated and creative.

O(2012)-3/10->Interestingly animated,but it's point of view of abstract.

Once Upon A Time There Was A Child(2012)-7/10->Cute and children's tale like.

Easy Is For Everyone(2012)-7/10->The story weaves fantastically and the animation is good,but it's a bit too long.

The Little Dark(2011)-1/10->Didn't understand it.

GUEST SCHOOL-HFF KONRAD WOLF

Never Drive A Car When You're Dead(2009)-10/10->An honest and harsh critique on modern society and death.

White,No White(2011)-4/10->It has a good idea,but it's too abstract for its own good.

Arachmaninoff(2010)-7/10->The creepy animation and the great ending make this worthwhile.

Hinterland(2010)-7/10->Hinterland is smart and really well animated.

The Changeling(2011)-6/10->Funny and nicely told.

House Wanders,Bird Water Full(2011)-8/10->Beautifully animated and very poetic.

Frog Weather(2011)-4/10->Too childish for its' own good.

Flamingo Pride(2011)-6/10->Hilarious,but that's about it.

28 September-11 October

Policeman(2011)-2/10->Lapid wanted to show a very realistic portrait of a cop (and of men,in general),but the result is a dull and badly acted film.

Reality(2012)-4/10->Although the first part of the film is generic,at least it's energetic,but in the second part it loses its' energy and it becomes almost as absent-minded as reality television itself.Shame,for this is a great subject.

Pusher(2012)-6/10->It brings the original a new atmosphere and all in all it's not a bad remake,but it's an unnecessary one.

Dark Horse(2011)-7/10->Even though it's not as thought provoking or as dark as Solondz' previous work,Dark Horse still is another great cynical look on life and love.

To Rome With Love(2012)-5/10->It has some of Allen's humour and a great cast,but it's clear he has lost his touch,the film being a hit-and-miss situation.