4-3-2: a must-see

Just watched one of the best films I've seen in some time--also one of the hardest films to watch in some time. 4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days (2007) was the last of the "big three" Romanian films of recent years to make it to DVD (after The Death of Mr. Lazarescu [2005] and 12:08, East of Bucharest [2006]).  4-3-2 won the Palm d'Or @ Cannes 2007, and deservedly so.  It's wrenching, it's heartbreaking.  It's the real deal.

Technically, the film is actually reminiscent of our Danish friends from Dogme95 (e.g., The Celebration [1998] and The Idiots [1998]): long takes, handheld, no music soundtrack, etc.  The DVD extras are quite nice, including extended interviews w/ the director and the cinematographer.  Also, there's a short documentary about taking the film on the road to show in provincial Romanian towns that no longer have a dedicated cinema in which to watch these films.

In light of my current research on Lithuania, I'm arguing that--at least from an audience perspective--Lithuanian "national cinema" was only viable while Lithuania was not a nation-state, but rather a republic of the USSR.  Conversely, after re-independence, Lithuanian national cinema has collapsed.  In the Romanian case, this collapse of the audience is also clearly happening... And yet we've seen some amazing, world-class films come from there in the past few years.  What lessons can Baltic filmmakers take from the Romanian case?

Below, I've posted the trailer for the film (now out on DVD).  Do yourself a favor and see 4 Months...  But be forewarned: it's a bitter pill.

Safe zones, Summer I, RSS feeds....

The management @ Some Assembly Required is proud to announce that this blog is now a certified safe zone!  If you have any questions or concerns as part of the GLBTA community, have any questions or concerns regarding GLBTA issues, or have a good lead for another outfielder for my fantasy baseball team, please feel free to contact me!....

Summer I started today, and Opening Day for my two courses are tomorrow: COMM 220 (Intro to Mass Communication) and COMM 396 (Mass Communication Theory & Research).  After this semester, the term "mass communication" will be little more than a foil for the term "media studies," which personally makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.  Both classes will be blogging, so I am hoping to get a little traffic from BSC folks (though I LOVE LOVE LOVE hearing from friends and family far afield, make no mistake!).  This is the second summer I've had students blog--I'm looking forward to getting feedback from new cohorts.  And, of course, it's always a blast for me to read what you all are doing as well--I love how I can click on your response to me and see your own blog.  (Geez, I sound all saucer-eyed, but it's a beautiful thing!)...

 Finally, check the RSS feeds I've installed on the bottom of the blog.  I will try to add different stuff as I go this term, but with AABS coming up this week, it is indeed right and salutary that we have feeds from both the English-language weekly The Baltic Times and the Lithuanian daily Lietuvos rytas.  Ask me how to add RSS feeds to your blog or webpage (hint: painfully simple)!