Review of Nea Marin miliardar

I have seen this movie several times and each time with delight, though I recognized its flaws in the script and technicalities. But this movie is a must see for every Romanian, due to its great cast and first of all to the lead actor Amza Pellea, one of the best Romanian actors ever. He was equally great in dramas and in comedies, playing heroes from the history, tough dramatic characters, or droll peasants like in this one. The main problem with this film is that it would be hardly understandable for non-Romanian viewers. You have to be familiar with some Romanian realities, especially from the country and the Communist era, and with the formidable TV stand up comedy character ("nea Marin", uncle Marin) around whom the parody plot is built up and who was created by the same Amza Pellea. If one translated the dialogs and dubbed the voice of "nea Marin", all the charm and fun would be gone. And here's a somewhat sentimental component: part of my family originated from the same southern region of Romania, and I laugh each time at the humor and peasant's common sense of that character, very similar to my father's and my uncle's. "Nea Marin" lives!