You Are Ceausescu to Me

Romania2021documentary101'Żarliwcy (2022)

In austere industrial interiors, young people re-enact scenes from Nicolae Ceauşescu’s life from the time when he was still a young and power-hungry conspirator. Historical photographs and documents from the police archives come alive before our very eyes and the kaleidoscope of conventions is breathtaking. The drama turns smoothly into a pastiche, and the young performers’ audacity makes up for their technical deficiencies. It turns out that quotes from a book do not have to be empty platitudes and the snappy combination of history, improvisation and self-reflection unexpectedly brings us closer to the truth about the essence of ideas, sacrifice and power.