Marfa si banii (2001)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Cristi Puiu

Writers:

Cristi Puiu (writer)
Razvan Radulescu (writer)

Release Date:

10 June 2004 (Hungary)

Genre:

Drama

Awards:

6 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Alexandru Papadopol	...	Ovidiu
Dragos Bucur	...	Vali
Ioana Flora	...	Bety
Luminita Gheorghiu	...	Mama
Razvan Vasilescu	...	Marcel Ivanov
Doru Ana	...	Doncea
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Constantin Draganescu	...	Tata
Serban Georgevici	...	Bodyguard

Directed by
Cristi Puiu

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Cristi Puiu		writer
Razvan Radulescu		writer

Cinematography by
Silviu Stavila

Art Department
Marius Bardasan	....	property master

Sound Department
Sorin Nitoi	....	sound mixer (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Florin Mihalache	....	electrician

Distributors

• Mitropoulos Films (2008) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)

Also Known As:

Stuff and Dough (International: English title)

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

Romania

Language:

Romanian

Color:

Color

Incredibly good!

Rarely did I feel such a deep and vivid satisfaction, while watching a movie... I could simply not take my eyes off the computer display, permanently letting go spontaneous remarks like: "Wow!", "O.M.F.G., how GOOD it can be!", "Dammit, but it's GREAT!", "Now, this is what I call a movie!", "Cristi, you sonovagun, you really DID IT!"

The script is simple but not simplistic, classic and revolutionary at the same time. Following the seemingly linear main plot, the authors subtly insert elements from a parallel story, never disclosed (the mysterious thugs who chase the protagonists - in a very "Duel"-like formula) and explosively blown in the corpses-on-the-field scene. All the elements of this structure charge the movie with so much tension, that the ending becomes barely bearable. In truth, it's one of the best built movie endings I saw in Romanian cinema. Just the thought of what might happen tomorrow gives you the creeps!

The direction is masterful and deconstructivist. Cristi's long and mobile shots, apparently messy, in truth perfectly figured, contribute to the inexorable build-up. The actors are snappy, precise - and so natural, that the stream of profanities they utter becomes literally charming. All in all, it's a certain recipe for quality: what one can do with a simple script and a few bucks, if one really has TALENT.

One should also add that this movie opened the so-called "minimalist trend" in Romanian cinema - the trademark of the New Generation. As one of our popular critics, Alex Leo Serban, was stating, one should mark it in our culture's history by the formula B.C.P. / A.C.P.: "Before Cristi Puiu" / "After..." - or "Annum..."! ;)