This is a Romanian film that meanders along without achieving much of anything, but for all that I quite enjoyed it. It follows engineering student Cristiana, who lives alone but is still dependent on her father to pay the bills. Virtually the only continuous plot thread is Cristiana sulking because daddy will not give her the money to buy an expensive pedigree dog (it does not seem to occur to her that if she can not afford to buy the dog in the first place, she certainly will not be able to afford to buy it food and to pay the vet's bills!) The rest of the time we see her have conversations with her friends, attend tedious lectures and spend time with her unpleasant (and married, naturally) boyfriend.
There is a lot of talk in the film which makes it a tough watch for those following the sub-titles, although director Ana Lungu helps by mostly using a static camera so the viewer is not distracted by changes of perspective - although this also means the many and lengthy scenes with no dialogue or action, such as Cristiana standing on her balcony smoking, are in danger of dragging on too long. Lead actress Elena Popa provides a likable if slightly infuriating heroine, and in general most of the cast are competent - a notable exception being Dan Lungu as her father, who may be aiming for 'subtle' but instead comes across as 'uninterested'.
There is a lot of talk in the film which makes it a tough watch for those following the sub-titles, although director Ana Lungu helps by mostly using a static camera so the viewer is not distracted by changes of perspective - although this also means the many and lengthy scenes with no dialogue or action, such as Cristiana standing on her balcony smoking, are in danger of dragging on too long. Lead actress Elena Popa provides a likable if slightly infuriating heroine, and in general most of the cast are competent - a notable exception being Dan Lungu as her father, who may be aiming for 'subtle' but instead comes across as 'uninterested'.
