Principii de viata (Principles of Life)
Romania
Directed by: Constantin Popescu
Screenplay by: Razvan Radulescu, Alex Baciu
Starring: Vlad Ivanov, Gabriel Huian, Rodica Lazar
Emilian Velicanu (Vlad Ivanov) is a short-fused, bear-bellied forty-something year old at odds with the modern world. We follow twenty-four hours of his life; a day in which he’s consistently annoyed by minor setbacks to his much anticipated family holiday by the seaside in Bulgaria, due to commence the next day.
Emilian works for a successful printing company, has two children, Catalin, a teenager from his previous marriage with Vicki, and Sorin, his younger son with current wife Ruxi. Yet today Catalin is stubborn, Ruxi is passive-aggressive and Sorin is mildly ill, let alone the pedantic customer that won’t stop calling about the flyers being printed with the wrong pantone. Emilian begins to wonder why everyone is ‘giving me such a hard time for?’. Until, finally, he explodes in an act of violence.
Principles of Life promises a film that hides a potent problematic behind its apparently trivial plot. At times, this is sustained by Vlad Ivanov’s excellent portrayal of a man with a confused set of principles, who defines himself through other people, be it his young wife Ruxi or his ex-wife Vicki. Popescu compliments this with a particular attention to detail and well-rounded characters. There are stark contrasts between the two wives, the two sons and even the two houses in which Emilian wanders throughout his day. There’s a constant dialogue between the tacky and the faux modern, the ill-intended and misdirected. Behind the layers of banal encounters, the film’s real issue deals with generational gaps. Sorin, Catalin and Emilian, men at different stages in their lives are either smothered by their mothers or simply unable to communicate. The violence that seeps its way into the film is only testament to the character’s inability to communicate, and their lack of adaptation to the demands of this modern society.
Yet despite Popescu’s controlled cinematic language, Principles of Life never gets to the heart of its subject. We spend time with a mildly arrogant yet light-hearted middle-aged man whose sudden act of anger, albeit unsurprising, remains inconsequential. Despite its humour and wit, the film doesn’t delve enough into the heart of the subject even during its most pertinent confrontation, between Vicki and Emilian. Principles of Life bears some resemblance to Razvan Radulescu’s own The Death of Mr Lazarescu. Popescu handles the subject matter with energy and elegance, yet doesn’t meet his cinematic mechanisms with an ardent discussion.
Of course, this isn’t a character portrait, it’s a film that instead paints a landscape. In this regard, Principles of Life is a potent portrait of modern Romanian life with plenty of humour and an engaging subtext behind its trivial characters.
Tagged: Constantin Popescu, East End Film Festival, Film, Romania