Lazarescu, a 63 year old man who drinks too much even after having ulcer surgery 14 years ago, still drinks. The film begin with how he futilely tries to call ambulance, complaining of head and belly aches. After medic finally came hours later, he begin a journey to find a hospital willing to treat him. If you want to be entertained, The Death of Mr. Lazarescu is not the film to see. If you want to see realism in its natural environment, The Death of Mr. Lazarescu is the film to see. If you want to see the quality of medical systems in less developed countries, sometime even comparable to the United State, then this is the film to see.
The style in The Death of Mr. Lazarescu does not represent global cinema, especially not Hollywood. There is no special effect. Many scenes are captured continuously with one take, and the camera is handheld evidence in how the frame shakes. Throughout the entire film, there are basically three different scenes: Lazarescu’s home, inside ambulance, and hospitals. The film is not a thriller, except for the fact that most scenes were at night and or done in low lighting. Some say it’s a comedy, but I wasn’t really laughing, but if you enjoy dark humor, you might find it hilarious.
If you haven’t fallen asleep after 30 minutes in, you may find that this film is noteworthy because of how real it portrays the situation an old man goes through as he seek medical attention from four hospital. It is shot using a handheld camera, maybe to create the effect of a documentary. As doctors see Lazarescu, they tend to berate him of his drinking than to provide medical service. In this aspect, this film is global in which it points out the flaws of many countries medical system, and how doctors should be mothers and fathers to their patient instead of just lecturer.
I have to disagree with your thoughts on this film being global in regards to faults of the global medicinal field. This film is a portrayal of the Romanian medicinal system in a very Romanian style. It is clearly a low-budget film, shot on-location, with a hand-held camera, no special effects, and a poor sense of proper lighting. This film was made BY Romanians FOR Romanians. The fact that it garnered enough outside attention to win an award in Toronto is an after-effect of adding the human element of empathy to the storyline. The viewer can't help but be sucked in to Mr. Lazarescu's story, but as far as the plot goes, I'd say it's certainly not a global film. Especially when comparing it to developed nations like the United States.
ReplyDeleteI believe that this film has many national elements, not global. The long camera takes, the simple settings and props, the low lighting, and the heightened sense of realism are all Romanian cinematic elements that are thoroughly represented in this film. The plot also reflects many Romanian cultural aspects, like the low quality health care, and the respect (or lack there of) for the different socioeconomic classes. This film's respect to Romanian trends is certainly shown throughout this film.
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