VHS Revolution: Calugareanu Shoots For Docu-Thrills
Much of the time, American imperialism is a culture destroying force that denigrates through sheer, unwieldy bloat, but in the case of Nicolae Ceausescu’s Romania of the 80s, the underground circulation of American films, especially action films starring the likes of Chuck Norris and Jean-Claude Van Damme, proved to be the catalyst that brought the brutal communist leader’s reign to an end. Thanks to a trio of brave souls and an army of bribed government officials, crudely dubbed VHS copies of American films of all sorts found their way into the packed living rooms of Romanians throughout the country, enlightening the masses to the oppressive state in which they unknowingly lived. Employing a strikingly lensed docudrama format that blends in lively interviews with those involved and many of those affected, director Ilinca Calugareanu elegantly recreates the cultural revelations of Romania still under...
Much of the time, American imperialism is a culture destroying force that denigrates through sheer, unwieldy bloat, but in the case of Nicolae Ceausescu’s Romania of the 80s, the underground circulation of American films, especially action films starring the likes of Chuck Norris and Jean-Claude Van Damme, proved to be the catalyst that brought the brutal communist leader’s reign to an end. Thanks to a trio of brave souls and an army of bribed government officials, crudely dubbed VHS copies of American films of all sorts found their way into the packed living rooms of Romanians throughout the country, enlightening the masses to the oppressive state in which they unknowingly lived. Employing a strikingly lensed docudrama format that blends in lively interviews with those involved and many of those affected, director Ilinca Calugareanu elegantly recreates the cultural revelations of Romania still under...
- 1/31/2015
- by Jordan M. Smith
- IONCINEMA.com
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