In most action films, the main character – the champion of the story so to speak – doesn’t die in the end. A tormented character, betrayed and chased by many, the Hero has to find the strength to continue, even when all odds are against him. He may end up beaten, stabbed or shot, but he isn’t allowed to let it go. If it were to die, the spectators would suddenly feel sad and lonely, disappointed and cheated.
However, in many American gangster films the tough guy gets killed in the end. By then, he is no longer the master of his own destiny because he has lost grip on reality, forgetting that sometimes reality stretches beyond what one cares to see. That’s why the unfortunate Hero thinks that he’s powerful, when in fact he is not. He needs to believe that he’s loved and becomes blind, unable to see the shadows that infested the Palace. Even the audience, whom he once dominated and fascinated so greatly, feels that the story has to come to an end. They just don’t know when.
For Romanian Dictator Nicolae Ceausescu it all ended with a bang in December 1989 when, as the television screens went on and off, the presidential couple was chased, put to trial and finally shot in army barracks in the town of Targoviste. The audience had been waiting for the film to end for quite a while then, but when the reward came everyone was there to enjoy it.
Such strange thoughts were crossing my mind as I was watching “The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceausescu” by Andrei Ujica – a documentary based entirely on archive images and without voice over. We don’t see their deaths in the film, although it starts with the trial and their final moments. The truth is that we already know that our Hero is doomed even before the narrative unfolds.
From a certain perspective, it all began at a funeral. It is 1965 and Gheorghe Gheorghiu Dej just died, so time has come for a new leader to arise. The body of the former boss rests in an open coffin, allowing Romanians to come and pay their respects. It is an old school funeral, with thousands of people, soldiers, black limos, big flags and almost impeccable protocol. Geometrical shots add to the drama reminding us that this is a big budget production, destined to impress. But what came next dwarfed this show of the past, as Ceausescu’s Golden Age had truly been the next level in terms of looting and cheating the people of Romania.
However it was not the polished black and white cinematography of the 1960’s that struck me, nor the colorful and jolly frames of the 1970’s. Instead I was almost shocked by how much the street and it people had changed under the reign of Ceausescu. The second thing that caught my attention concerned the Leader himself. I noticed that when he visited anything from an ordinary store to the huge House of People, Ceausescu was surrounded by various advisers and officials. Most of the time they are positioned only a few inches from him, forming a strange cluster of bodies and voices that obscure space, words and even Ceausescu himself.
Fascinated by this super production which was as real as they come – the reign of Ceausescu lasted 25 years – I tried to understand what sort of character this Hero was in the end. Was he a dreamer? Was he weak and manipulated by those around him? Did he think of himself as a God, shot because he forgot that Gods don’t grow old and weak? And what about the people, those who both cherished and hated him so passionately and for so long?
Everything was real and yet the world is unstable, as in a dream. As the frame keeps changing, the life within it also changes dramatically. So, what if the film relented? And then stopped? What would the pixels reveal? What would they say about the hero and about his audiences?
Welcome to The Pixels of the Golden Age, but beware: this dream actually happened…
click below for Part 1: The Godfather
PIXELS OF THE GOLDEN AGE, THOUGHTS ON FRAMES AND POLITICS. Part 1: The Godfather
click below for Part 2: The Golden Age
PIXELS OF THE GOLDEN AGE, THOUGHTS ON FRAMES AND POLITICS. PART 2: The Golden Age
All frames are captured from “The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceausescu” by Andrei Ujica, as found on youtube.
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