4 months, 3 weeks, and 2 days

Last week I saw the Romanian film 4 months, 3 weeks, & 2 days playing at Alcazar. This is probably the most important motion picture I have seen all year, and believe me that I have been well on my way to earning the Cineplanet gold card for a while now. (Meaning I go to the movies 2-3 times a week).

4m, 3w, & 2d was absolutely perfect as a film, and the story was riveting though admittedly not something that I felt so comfortable watching.

Every scene was full of visual and audible information bursting with symbols and color and compassion. I think that movies taking place near the end of communism (Good Bye Lenin, for example) have such intriguing material to work with that such scene development is possible. The sets put forth a lot of details about the era that give the viewer the gritty sense of what it was like for these young students living in Romania.

The film is delicately layered with images/scenes of intercourse and motherhood that really get at the center of the film's subject matter. To me the most important and impressive scene was one that I was about to discard as lengthy and boring before I realized what was going on. When Otilia goes to Adi's house for dinner and the camera focuses on Adi and Otilia as they don't say a word though Adi's parents and uncles tell family stories and compare today's (1987) audacious youth with their own. When I stopped trying to read the fast moving subtitles and just saw the beautiful faces of Otilia and Adi. The scene segues into an argument that Otilia and Adi have over what they would do if Otilia were to end up in Gabita's situation. It's a scary though accurate example of male ignorance of birth control and the actual choices that women have to make and the ones that they have no control over. This is why this scene to me is the most important one of the film: this open discussion of what if: the need for more information from one's partner. It is one of the least shocking scenes of the film, though I think it leaves the viewer with the most to take away. Discussions about birth control need to be existent and open. Women need to be shown the respect by men and other women and society to make the decision that is best for them -- and it is a woman's decision--whether it be abstinence, using a contraceptive, having an abortion at a suitable juncture, or having a baby. If a woman is as daft as Gabita when it comes to making this decision, I pray for more Otilias, responsible partners, and widespread and comprehensive sexual education in this world.