California Dreamin' (Nesfarsit)

Cristian Nemescu's Cannes award wining movie, California Dreaming manages to exceptionally underline the issue of globalization, bureaucracy, the international image of the United States and it's actions, opportunism; also some of the bitter realities of Romanian administration, politics, mentality and the servility regarding foreigners that is found in this country way of thinking; everything is spinning around an old local obsession from 1944 when all of Romania was waiting for the US Forces to arrive and liberate it from the occupants; the viewer is surprised several times by different cues(lines) that are more or less subtle and what is impressive is that with only one phrase some of the characters manage to create powerful images and scenes. The arrival of the Americans in the Capalnita Village it is seen by locals as a unique chance to live a better life and in their attempt to distinguish themselves, the villagers become capable to give rise to amazing actions never seen before in the community even though in the end all becomes so very ridiculous and ironically for both of the sides(the US Marines and the Romanians)but for different reasons: the Americans because of their unstoppable urge to leave and being stuck in the middle of nowhere and the villagers for their desire to lure and impress the new arrived guests. Another thing to remind is the brilliant black and white scenes mixed in the movie, which present a story from The Second World War, aspects which are essential for the viewer to understand the mentality of one of the most important character named Doianu, the one who actually starts the main plot. The overall impression is that of a movie with a great script, very well played, fascinating situations, but above all so very exceptional directed.

It's always touchy to look and judge unfinished work. Nemescu's death was perhaps one of the cruelest things to have happened in 2006 (a year of sufficient cruelty), as it always is when young, talented people fade out too quickly. Yet, in watching "California Dreamin'" I cannot but accept the fact that this may not have been the director's final vision, while still going on to comment on the things I saw and felt. What might have been, what could have been - these are things of the past. We have to enjoy "California Dreamin'" for what it is and judge it accordingly.

The story of Capalnita is a sad one, as it is the story of many parts of Romania, a country in desperate need to be seen and heard. While the movie takes place on a more personal level, the allusion is inescapable, as are quite a few other things about life around here.

The main plot revolves around a NATO transport sent to Kosovo by train, which is stopped in - literally - the middle of nowhere, by a station conductor who claims he wants to see the transit papers for whatever is being transported. As these documents are missing, he decides to pull the train over until the necessary papers come through. The convoy's American forces accept this delay grudgingly, but they quickly join the celebrations held in their honor by a mayor who sees profit opportunities in the unexpected turn of events. Soldiers get together with local girls, love and sex stories unfold, with no actual surprises to the mature mind. In the mix is a young local boy, head over heels in love with the most attractive girl from the village - a common story of shyness and deep affection. As the delays pile on, spirits start rising and the situation gets more and more tense - especially as the American commanding officer, Captain Jones (Armand Assante), grows wearingly restless. The outcome of the story is for you to relish or despise, but at two and a half hours, you'll have to be patient.

The film's length is, I'm sorry to say, unjustified and the story drags you along in something that resembles agony more than joy. Also, structure and style tend do be more conventional than not. Yet, there are many beautiful moments to be had, many moments which reflect a desperate world, moments with universal validity on both social and personal levels. The characters themselves are quite intriguing at first (as is the whole movie, for around sixty minutes) but they start wearing off towards the end, plagued by what I found to be strange inconsistencies - or plainly a raw denouement to the picture. There is something subtle, something beyond the obvious realm of the film that quietly unfolds, a story of immense sadness, a story that reflects exactly how diseased modern society is, with an emphasis on Romanian problems that have shaped the late 20th century for all the people living there. However, the humanity which lies behind these unobtrusive connections knows no boundaries of land and nationality. The problem I saw myself faced with was that the film did not clearly focus on its direction(s), and despite its unsympathetic running time, it still rushed a half-fabricated end - which I found to be a serious letdown. All in all though, the underlying message is clear and sensible: there will be no Americans (or any "others") to come and save us, we need to find the resources ourselves to deal with life as it as and as we've made it be.

Armand Assante plays it straight all the way, the tough guy trying hard to keep calm in a situation which defies his notions of bureaucracy and efficiency. The lack of response from Romanian authorities was - to my mind - completely unimaginable to a foreign army man, yet the usual resourcefulness of American imagination clears the way for a solution. While I found it disturbing and unsatisfactory, it is for you to judge its validity. Charming as she was (and always is), Maria Dinulescu portrays a character so typical and so unbelievable that it is hard to truly feel for her fate, as ultimately is the problem of almost the whole of Capalnita. Despite the fact that the film very accurately (and often amusingly) portrays the underpinnings of Romanian hospitality, this effect wears off about halfway through the film - as I've already mentioned.

So how valuable a film is "California Dreamin'" and did it deserve a win at the Cannes? Well, it is a film which could have been good - even very good - had Nemescu had time to round it all off, but as such it is more of a long and unsatisfactory ride through the mysterious world of a tiny town at the outskirts of Bucharest. There's a lot of stuff there you can enjoy, a lot of sad truths and a great central character in the person of Doiaru, but the final impression is weak and underplays the film's potential. Yet...we live with what we have.

I'll begin with a piece of trivia: it's very funny to see that all among the comments about this movie, the worst are originating from Serbia. Why? Because the subject is approaching in an objective way (not a demonizing one) Romania's cooperation with the N.A.T.O. forces, during the Kosovo crisis at the end of the last century. (Besides this, it's significant to see that Mladen Ilic is inventing faults, in his drive to dis-consider the movie - or, perhaps, the poor man is just a profane spectator who has no grasp of the profession; if this be the case, he is excused).

Another piece of trivia is that, after the press screening of the movie, the writer was almost coming to blows with me, because my public comments during the conference had included a certain criticism. (Fortunately, now we are okay again.) To get to the point, I should say that my official review of the movie is pretty detailed, and any Romanian-reading user can read it on Cinemagia or Liternet (unfortunately, I can't post the links here, since the IMDb rules forbid it; but you know what I'm speaking about). The important thing is that "California Dreamin' (Unfinished)" is indeed one of these golden movies of Romanian's present day's generation. It expresses an unmistakable Romanian note, in style, content and feeling, and also a definitory trait of its sadly departed author, the talented an exceptionally rigorous Cristian Nemescu (here comes the THIRD piece of trivia: we fought like mad on the Cinemagia Forum - but, thank God, we made up one year before his tragic demise).

A very important piece of info: Cristi Nemescu had the habit to shoot much more than it was meant to get into the movie, and then to ruthlessly re-organize and cut short his footage, while editing. It was his own way to reach the maximum level of his expression. Still, because of his death, the producer and crew decided to keep as much as possible of his shot footage - out of respect for his work. This is why the movie remained so long and somewhat dissipated in the last quarter.

The good news is that even those scenes are well done, precise and compelling, so the fault belongs only to the structural principles, not also to the pictures as such. Although loosely articulated, boring it doesn't become, that final section! Putting together all the good and bad points, "California Dreamin' (Unfinished)" remains one of the best Romanian movies of all times - and, more than that: as an East European movie in the widest sense. Highly recommended viewing - if you have an atom of cinematographic taste, you won't regret it one bit!

In artistic terms the movie is great. The story is superb, the acting is excellent too. Nevertheless there is an issue that should be taken into account when a director decides to make a movie with an eastern European setting. Films like the ones directed by Emir Kusturica or Nae Caranfil and now by Nemescu reveal and insist on revealing only one side of the Balkans. This facet is often exaggerated for artistic purposes and while it identifies the Balkans in certain aspects, it can also be very hazardous on the longer term. The Romanian, Serbian or Bulgarian societies are certainly more complex than the instances and the characters depicted in "White cat, black cat", "Philantropica" or "California Dreamin'". This picturesque facet constantly addressed by film makers represents a reality of the region but should not be generalized. This is the hazard of making such movies. Westerners and Americans, not very accustomed to the history and the society of the Eastern Europe might reduce them to this narrow view: gypsies, easy and shallow girls, the general poverty and corruption and a scene populated by low-lifes and scums. Everyone seeing this film should enjoy it for what it is, but should also keep in mind that, although true at a certain level, Romania means more than that.

It's funny how similar are all the comments posted by the Romanian viewers. The first time I saw the movie I thought "God, is it possible to never forget such a sad existence? Such a bitter-sweet look upon our life? The so-called *balkanism*?..." Do we ever make a jump, like a time-lap, and have different views on what do we do every day?

Further more beyond the "national sport" (as someone once called it) of self-complaining lies the truth. A certain truth that hurts. We can all see the progress of the Romanian society; we think that the rest of the world doesn't. We point the finger on "the other side" or "the good side", so there shall be no mistakes... Well, I've been once in Capalnita, and I had a shock because after seeing this movie I realized it's all there! There's no need for sets, there's no need for trained actors... The grass still grows between the pieces of the sidewalk in the railroad station... Only today's mobile phones and the car models have changed.

Why should a film director make a "more expensive film" or a "non-low-budget" one? Do you really care about how much did it cost? Or, should really be the film an accurate projection of the real life? Was it ever so? No matter what good or wrong you you'll see in the recent Romanian society, there are certain people living in this country who can make genuine art. And finishing a work of art is utopia.

I couldn't avoid to observe Nemescu's care for details and real life like shots. Many excellent Romanian film directors tend to have a keen sense for the dynamism of the short takes by "wearing" the camera like a peer of glasses. No soundtrack is needed except the music within the scene. In the most cases the human eye concentrates on human subjects just like Nemescu's lens did in this masterpiece (from normal to long focal lens, say 85mm or even more than 200mm in some cases). One surrealist shot (with the "Romanian-made" Efel tower) caught my attention as an exception. No image stabilizer is needed when you make a non-commercial movie. On the contrary! Usually, in a very dynamic scene -like a fight- your eye captures only bits of shocking details, cause you're frightened. Complementary artificial lighting is quite moderate if not absent. Sure, this version of the displayed picture needed further cuts and refinements. And this is not because the picture is "too long". That's Hollywood's paradigm, cause art in general doesn't deal with units of measurement. Strangely as it seems for the "outsiders", for those who consider the play of the actors and the action are overreacted, this film can generate pure emotions, antipodes, anger, hope, deliverance, fervour, grace... And this is the main purpose of the 7-th art.

Yes, it's a great movie, even if it's unfortunately unfinished; like an unexploded bomb in the Romanian consciousness... But is there anything "finished" or it has ever been something really "finished" in our country, Romania? Maybe Cristian Nemescu new why it's "endless".