Familiar

Driven by his family's history, Golden Bear winner Călin Peter Netzer returns to the big screen with a feature that conjures Romania's Communist past to paint a picture of destructive familial secrets. The semi-meta narrative follows Dragoş (Emanuel Pârvu), a director seeking to adapt the story of his parents' emigration to West Germany in the 80s. Slowly descending a rabbit hole of hidden truths, the protagonist finds his family, identity and romantic life under threat. Netzer's exploration of his past is ambitious and well-acted but has a turbulent temperament that hinders the viewer's rapport with its characters.

Looking to understand the obscure circumstances under which his parents left Romania during the Communist regime, Dragoş urges them to declassify their Securitate (Secret Police) files. His mother (Ana Ciontea) is happy to help but is reserved when speaking about her affair with a German ethnic who helped her with the emigration. His father, played by veteran actor Adrian Titieni, is indignant at his son's desire to dig up the past, especially when it involves remembering his spouse's infidelity. Stuck between the erratic conflict of his parents, it becomes evident that Dragoş's path to discovery is not only restrained by a history of society-wide oppression but also by his family's ingrained secrets.

The protagonist's strenuous relationship with his manipulative mother is compelling and mirrors elements from Netzer's award-winning Child's Pose. Ciontea encompasses the complex emotions of a mother who understands her past wrongdoings but is unapologetic about her actions to offer his child a better future. Pârvu fully immerses himself in the role of the troubled director, feeling the weight of his decisions and having difficulty trusting his loved ones.

His awkward handling of the truth extends to his romantic life when he fails to inform his girlfriend Alina (Victoria Ecaterina Moraru) about the involvement of Ilinca (Iulia Lumânare) his ex, in the film. Having been raised in a family marked by lies, he presents conflicting narratives to the two women, creating a tense environment that grabs the viewer's attention but staggers toward overt aggression.

Netzer delves into meta-filmmaking to exorcise his past and probe the elusive nature of truth, especially in an environment haunted by aggressive societal censorship. Split-screen scenes which fully expose the editing process offer the refined perspective desperately sought by Dragoș and propose a journey of discovery during which his identity is questioned. His clash with his parents' past reveals essential information that forms an intriguing sub-story about the value of German citizenship for Romanians, both before and after the fall of Communism.

As Dragoș loses control over his movie and relationship with his parents, Ilinca tells him he is dangerously close to the subject. Mirroring his fictional counterpart, Netzer's attitude toward his latest film feels too visceral. He properly grapples with issues of trauma and deception but his inclination for messy hostility overshadows the commendable acting and the frequent hysteric intercalations diminish the project's ambition.