Moartea domnului Lăzărescu (The Death of Mr. Lazarescu)

Moartea domnului Lăzărescu ("The Death of Mister Lazarescu"), directed by Cristi Puiu, is a Romanian drama with a dark plot that details the final 12 hours of a lonely, alcoholic pensioner's life. This lengthy film begins with an almost tedious introduction to Dante Lazarescu in his small apartment and, throughout the night, follows him through the streets of Bucharest to four separate hospitals. Viewers observe Mr. Lazarescu losing coherency while medical staff, for one reason or another, refuse to treat him and send him off once more in the ambulance. The final scene closes without giving the viewers a definite conclusion; however, they may realize that they have been paying less and less attention to the rapidly deteriorating Mr. Lazarescu as the movie’s focus turned to those around him, considering him a casualty long before the closing scene.

The Death of Mr. Lazarescu is a film that uses cramped, close shots, shaky and uneven camera motions, and unnatural fluorescent lighting to give the film a morbidly realistic twist. The scenery is neither beautiful nor inspiring: the film is seen from the inside of Mr. Lazarescu’s dirty, soiled apartment, the small ambulance, and various rooms in overcrowded hospitals. Viewers are treated to close up looks at every aspect of the movie while the camera bounces along, turning the audience from disengaged viewers to active participants in the drama and action.

This gritty, realistic film style is, in part, a cultural response. While the film certainly examines and even skewers the poorly organized and run healthcare of the country, there is also a broader criticism to be heard. As A.O. Scott points out, prior to the revolution in 1989, Romanian public life and media was dominated by lies and fantasies; the communist party controlled what was told and how it was told. After the revolution, many filmmakers revolted against this delusional style, instead focusing on stories that ring true and that make the audience take note. The Death of Mr. Lazarescu is certainly one such film: Puiu focuses on this one man’s final hours without adding glamour or distance, brutally forcing the audience to stay with the characters until the very end.

-Samantha Thomson

The Death of Mr. Lazarescu Trailer