Directed by Corneliu Porumboiu, the title for 12:08 East of Bucharest as it was released in Romania is: "A revolution, or not a revolution." That is, in an essence, what the film is about. Set in a small town, a textile engineer-come-journalist hosts a Christmas talk show to determine whether or not a revolution occurred in the small town 19 years previously, when their country broke free from dictatorship. Was it a revolution, or a tall-story made up by a group of drunks?
The film reeks of typical post-communism depression. It is almost clichéd, though is spared by the stylish way it is filmed. Shots of characterless, bleak Romanian suburban sprawls are frequent and make the viewer feel as lethargic as the eastern European characters do themselves. It's not until the latter half that we are able to relax, and really get our teeth into the plot.
This is because the film is shot in a highly voyeuristic manner. They are mostly taken from a stationary camera that captures events within one room at a time. This gives the impression that you're a peeping tom looking around corners, though some scenes are framed as if the camera has been placed upon a bookshelf and forgotten about. The effect is that the audience is thrown into the lives of the three main characters.
The second part of the film is set in the TV studio, through the lens of the cameras filming the chat show. This is where the atmosphere of the entire production is lifted and elements of comedy replace the dreary monotony of the former part. The shambolic production of the chat show which broadcasts on a shoestring, and to only a handful of people, is highly amusing. Yet through the performances of the three main characters the importance of the inquest is clear. Such realistic and refined acting is hard to find and is highly evident here. One wonders whether they were even given scripts or simply told to improvise. The atmosphere created by the actors, particularly Ian Sapdaru who plays Manescu the drunken teacher, affects the sympathies of the audience greatly.
As a display of cinematic artistic prowess, or of acting brilliance, 12:08 East of Bucharest is fantastic. After all it has won nine awards and has been nominated for a further three. However, the film lacks a degree of aesthetics. It is by no means a comfortable view, and although there are elements of comedy, the audience is never left to fall in love with the characters, despite the great skill they are portrayed with. Like the great painting the Mona Lisa, one can appreciate its artistic brilliance, but probably wouldn't ever hang it on their wall.
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