Die Axt

"Baltagul" is one of the most breathtaking Romanian stories ever told. I generally like Sadoveanu's novels, but "Baltagul"'s story is by far the best. Vitoria Lipan's "road" through the story can be also considered a road through life. Her attitude and her courage shows that love does not know boundaries. It can be also considered an excellent example for youngsters, but also a mirror for the illegal things that were happening even in the old days. Never be afraid of facing the truth, even if it hurts, because truth shall set you free, that's what Vitoria suggests throughout the movie. The only thing that kept me from giving "Baltagul" 10 was the fact that Gheorghita's character (Vitoria's son) didn't say too much things, although he could in many moments.

the novel by Sadoveanu is a great temptation for a director. it has a high potential to create a fascinating , touching story, it is useful for explore traditions and believes and life rules and a wise story about justice. the film of Mircea Mureșan has only a sin - it is prisoner of too generous good intentions. that it is the motif who does it a kind of improvisation, mixture of colors and images and picturesque and spectacular and empty gestures/words, slices of words and crumbs of popular habits. the desire of director - to impress is the cage for the film. because all is reduced at images. many - real seductive. but the psychology of characters is ignored. the tension of the travel to the truth - a sketch. the force of the hope and feelings - pretext for few scenes who are only slices of village life. it is not the error of Mircea Mureșan but the result of habits in a different genre of film. it is not the error of Margarita Lozano as Vitoria Lipan ; she does a decent job in a role who remains out of her. sure, it is an if. the film was an old project of Liviu Ciulei. the role of Vitoria Lipan has, in this first project, Anna Magnani. but each of them represents only details.it walks on a different way than the original novel. in fact, that is all.

Good intentions, horrible fruit.

An artificial film, with kitsch and strange pathetic sequences, without soul or sense, without art to describe a profound tragedy, an ordinary homework of a poor schoolboy.

A caricature who dreams be masterpiece. Empty characters and fruitless images. Stupid acting and atmosphere of bad soap-operas. An accident and an artistic error.

In fact, tragedy of good director's evolution. "Rascoala" is a splendid film but in Mircea Muresan filmography is a isle. The temptation to present the reality in every his nook, to describe the profound soul of a world, to explore gestures of a woman who search his husband, to see the magic of a sacrifice and the skin of a deep love, to touch the myth and keep his soul are only chimeric desires in this case. The presence of Margarita Lozano is inutile when the acting is only shadow of a powerful literary character.

The novel of Mihail Sadoveanu is a adaptation of "Mioritza" ballad. This ballad is part of Romanian spirit definition, picture of Romanian sensitivity, form of self-affirmation. It is ballad of pastoral people, page of Balkanic identity, mixture of hope, desire, expectation and sacrifice, symbol of a special universe in which old moral laws remains fundamental ways for discover sense of existence, knitting between ancestral rules and Christianism.

"Baltagul" ignores that. It is only massacre of a touching literary creation.