12:08 East of Bucharest
Encyclopedia
12:08 East of Bucharest is a 2006 Romania
n film directed by Corneliu Porumboiu
, released in 2006 and winner of the Camera d'Or
Prize (for best first film) at the Cannes Film Festival
. It was also released in the United States
under the abridged titles East of Bucharest and 12:08 Bucharest. The film is set in the city of Vaslui
, and centers on a group of characters who revisit the Romanian Revolution of 1989
which brought an end to the communist regime
.
The full English title refers to the setting of the film and the time of day at which Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu
fled following the revolution, 12:08 pm on December 22, 1989. The original Romanian title roughly translates to "Was There or Wasn't There?", referring to the film's central issue: did Vaslui have any part in the 1989 revolution? The answer depends on whether the city registered any protest before the moment of Ceauşescu's flight.
reported that 95% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 44 reviews. Metacritic
reported the film had an average score of 77 out of 100, based on 15 reviews.
The film has garnered positive press in the United States; J. Hoberman
of The Village Voice
called it, "a casually bleak and neatly structured ensemble comedy—at once deadpan
and bemused." Noel Murray of The A.V. Club
said "the story and the situation are slight, but in the best possible way." Richard Brody of The New Yorker
called it a "wise and gentle comedy of political realism." Wendy Ide of The Times
described the film as "one of the best of the new wave of Romanian cinema" and "a droll delight that questions the nature of historical record and the realities of postcommunist Romania with a slyly comic and disarmingly self-mocking tone." Also, it got a perfect 4 stars out of 4 from the New York Post
.
V.A. Musetto of the New York Post named 12:08 East of Bucharest the best film of 2007. A.O. Scott of The New York Times
named it the 6th best film of 2007 (along with Live-In Maid
).
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n film directed by Corneliu Porumboiu
Corneliu Porumboiu
Corneliu Porumboiu is a Romanian film director and screenwriter. His 2006 feature 12:08 East of Bucharest won him the Camera d'Or prize at the Cannes Film Festival...
, released in 2006 and winner of the Camera d'Or
Caméra d'Or
The Caméra d'Or is an award of the Cannes Film Festival for the best first feature film presented in one of the Cannes' selections ....
Prize (for best first film) at the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
. It was also released in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
under the abridged titles East of Bucharest and 12:08 Bucharest. The film is set in the city of Vaslui
Vaslui
Vaslui , a city in eastern Romania, is the seat of Vaslui County, in the historical region of Moldavia.The city administers five villages: Bahnari, Brodoc, Moara Grecilor, Rediu and Viişoara.-History:...
, and centers on a group of characters who revisit the Romanian Revolution of 1989
Romanian Revolution of 1989
The Romanian Revolution of 1989 was a series of riots and clashes in December 1989. These were part of the Revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several Warsaw Pact countries...
which brought an end to the communist regime
Communist Romania
Communist Romania was the period in Romanian history when that country was a Soviet-aligned communist state in the Eastern Bloc, with the dominant role of Romanian Communist Party enshrined in its successive constitutions...
.
The full English title refers to the setting of the film and the time of day at which Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceauşescu
Nicolae Ceausescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu was a Romanian Communist politician. He was General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and as such was the country's second and last Communist leader...
fled following the revolution, 12:08 pm on December 22, 1989. The original Romanian title roughly translates to "Was There or Wasn't There?", referring to the film's central issue: did Vaslui have any part in the 1989 revolution? The answer depends on whether the city registered any protest before the moment of Ceauşescu's flight.
Reviews
The American review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 95% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 44 reviews. Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
reported the film had an average score of 77 out of 100, based on 15 reviews.
The film has garnered positive press in the United States; J. Hoberman
J. Hoberman
James Lewis Hoberman , also known as J. Hoberman, is an American film critic. He is currently the senior film critic for The Village Voice, a post he has held since 1988.-Education:...
of The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
called it, "a casually bleak and neatly structured ensemble comedy—at once deadpan
Deadpan
Deadpan is a form of comic delivery in which humor is presented without a change in emotion or body language, usually speaking in a casual, monotone, solemn, blunt, disgusted or matter-of-fact voice and expressing an unflappably calm, archly insincere or artificially grave demeanor...
and bemused." Noel Murray of The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
said "the story and the situation are slight, but in the best possible way." Richard Brody of The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
called it a "wise and gentle comedy of political realism." Wendy Ide of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
described the film as "one of the best of the new wave of Romanian cinema" and "a droll delight that questions the nature of historical record and the realities of postcommunist Romania with a slyly comic and disarmingly self-mocking tone." Also, it got a perfect 4 stars out of 4 from the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
.
V.A. Musetto of the New York Post named 12:08 East of Bucharest the best film of 2007. A.O. Scott of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
named it the 6th best film of 2007 (along with Live-In Maid
Cama Adentro
Cama adentro is an Argentine and Spanish drama film, written and directed by Jorge Gaggero. In Spain it is also known as Señora Beba. It was executive produced by Aqua Films' Verónica Cura. The picture features Norma Aleandro, Norma Argentina, among others.The drama is set in Buenos Aires during...
).
Cast
- Mircea Andreescu - Emanoil Piscoci
- Teodor Corban - Virgil Jderescu
- Ion Sapdaru - Tiberiu Manescu
- Mirela Cioaba - Doamna Manescu
- Luminita Gheorghiu - Doamna Jderescu
- Cristina Ciofu - Vali
- Lucian Iftime - Lica
- Annemarie Chertic - Vera
- Petrica Sapdaru - Petrica
- Catalin Paraschiv - Barman
- George Guoqingyun - Chen
- Constantin Dita - Tibi
- Daniel Badale - Professor
- Marius Rogojinski - Vecin (credited as Marius Rogojinschi)
- Aurelia Tocu - Maricica Dima (voice only)