THE ACTOR AND THE SAVAGES (1975) – drama film online

Directed by: Manole Marcus
Script: Titus Popovici
Cast: Toma Caragiu, Mircea Albulescu, Margareta Pogonat, Ion Besoiu, Mircea Diaconu, Carmen Petrescu, Maria Chira, George Paul Avram, Marin Moraru, Ovidiu Iuliu Moldovan, Carmen Berbecaru, Gheorghe Simonca, Florin Zamfirescu, Lucia Boga, Lia Sahighian, Tricy Abramovici, Zephi Alșec, Cornel Ciupercescu, Constantin Dinulescu, Fana Geică, Horea Popescu, Mircea Veroiu, Ștefan Tury, Rudy Rosenfeld, Francisc Bentze, Constantin Drăgănescu, Nicolae Praida, Manu Nedeianu, Nicolae Patrichi, Mircea Cogan, Petre Gheorghiu-Goe, Mihăilescu Cartală, Ioana Crăciunescu, Mihai Perșa, Virgil Mogoș, Vasile Florescu, Iosif Gheorghe, Jeana Gorea, Eugen Racoți, Richard Rang, Petre Kuhn
Producer: Corneliu Leu, Marin Teodorescu
Cinematography by: Nicu Stan
Edited by: Lucia Anton
Sound: Bujor Suru
Music: George Grigoriu
Year: 1975
Category: Feature film
Genre: Drama
Duration: 150 minutes

71,578 – Cinepub viewers

PLOT SUMMARY

The famous revue theater “Vox”, directed by Costică Caratase, is preparing a show in which the resistance number is a virulent attack on Nazism and the Iron Guard. Both Caratase and his lyricist, Ionel Fridman, are told by the legionaries to quit. The first casualty of this foul deed was Ionel Fridman, assassinated in Caratase’s presence because he had finished the text of the show in defiance of the legionaries. Caratase, a great comedian of Bucharest during the war years, resists the legionary pressures that demand that he sweeten his satire, paying with his own life for his indignity.

AWARDS:

• 1975 – ACIN – Special Jury Award for screenplay (Titus Popovici)
• 1975 1975 – ACIN – Award for male performance (Mircea Diaconu)
• 1975 – Moscow Festival – Award for scenography (Virgil Moise)

CRITICAL REVIEWS:

“Under the face and in the hand of Toma Caragiu, Costică Caratase has vulgarity molded on candor and irony on subtlety and comic genius on the genius awareness of his own value, of his strength of arm. A character who gives free rein to the tragic and comic in him, room for the sharp bite of irony and for the lump raised in the throat by the presence of overwhelming sadness.” – Eva Sârbu, “Cinema” magazine (1975)

“(The film) harmonizes distinct cinematic genres – satire, estrada and comedy with political pamphleteering, even, with the serious, dramatic tones of political indictment (…. ) (Toma Caragiu) moves easily from irony to satire, from sarcasm to pamphlet, from mirth to sadness and from smiles to tears, the directors fully capitalizing on the entire ensemble of moods, gestures and attitudes of the illustrious comedian of yesteryear.” – Călin Căliman

“The strength of the movie is the excellent screenplay by Titus Popovici which, amalgamating different genres such as the estrada, burlesque, pamphlet and even political indictment, ensures, especially for Caragiu and Diaconu, exceptional appearances and scores a remarkable success with the public: 5,452,000 tickets were requested. Less convincing is the satirical monologue, which is precisely the stakes of the conflict, a recital of commonplaces.” – Tudor Caranfil, “Universal Movies Dictionary”, Ed. Litera, 2008

“Caratase, a great comedian of Bucharest during the war years – a character inspired by Constantin Tanase – resists the legionary pressures that demand the sweetening of satire, paying with his life for his audacity.” – Tudor Caranfil, “Universal Movies Dictionary”, Ed. Litera, 2008

“Titus (Popovici) is one of the most marked, since his literary cradle, with the mark of these two great lilies of fire: politics and revolution. It has never been necessary to explain to him the importance of the social in art, of the intellectual option of the left, Marxist, anti-fascist, anti-totalitarian, of the great communist responsibilities” – Radu Cosașu

“The film formally approaches the genre of musicals, and in terms of influences one can make connections with Bob Fosse’s famous ‘Cabaret’ (1972) made only three years earlier, a political musical that deals with the rise of Nazism in the Weimar Republic.” – Bogdan Jitea, iiccmer.ro

“The film does not seek to dissect the complexities and nuances of evil, but to show that substantial resilience can occur even in the most (seemingly) frivolous of environments. The closing sequence, a tribute to “The Great Dictator” (1940, dir. Charlie Chaplin), precisely and colorfully attacks a mind-bending evil.” – Emil Vasilache, cinepub.ro

“Manole Marcus retains the impetus of films such as ”The Canary and the Blizzard“ (1970) or “Power and Truth” (1972) and combines it with the skill with which he represented in “I Don’t Want to Get Married” (1961) the glimmers of a euphoric era, to create – on a script written by Titus Popovici – a popular movie, at once frivolous and serious. In ‘The Actor and the Savages, Marcus also shifts the usual focus of Romanian socialist interwar socialist films about the interwar period away from the outlaws and traces the persecution suffered by Jews at the hands of Romanian fascists.” – Emil Vasilache, cinepub.ro

TRIVIA:

• The director Manole Marcus was born on January 8, 1928 and graduated from the Institute of Theater and Cinematography in 1955, later to become a reference name in Romanian filmography.
• “The Actor and the Savages” has been seen by 5,453,002 spectators in Romanian cinemas, according to a survey of the number of spectators recorded by Romanian films from the date of its premiere to 31.12.2007 compiled by the National Cinematography Center.
• The movie is the second product of the collaboration between two filmmakers firmly committed to the communist ideology, after “Power and Truth” (1972).
• On the news that the role had been written especially for him, Toma Caragiu told the magazine “Cinema” no. 6/1974: “I’m not so sure that the writer and director thought of me in particular when they conceived this movie, why all this honor on my head? (…) But, after reading the script, I said to myself: ‘This is it, Caragiu! Now or never! Either give it all you’ve got, or quit!'”
• The character of Costică Caratase is inspired by the personality and work of the actor and theater director Constantin Tanase, but he is not known to have had any problems with the legionaries or the Carlist dictatorship as he is portrayed in the film.
• Just like Costică Caratase or Mărioara (the incarnation of Maria Tănase), the character of Guță Popescu is the representation of Nae Ionescu. “The devilish leader Guță Popescu is the one who is effectively behind the action to stop Caratase’s performance by any means possible. In reality, even after the remitization of the inter-war period, after 1990, including Corneliu Zelea Codreanu, it is not known how close the relations between the Captain and Nae Ionescu were. It is known that Nae Ionescu was a sympathizer of the Legion, but it is not known how much he agreed with their way of acting.” (Ciprian Plăiașu, historia.ro)
• “After several performances, Constantin Tanase was arrested, threatened with death, and ordered to stop performing the play. But Tanase was not easily intimidated. At the next performance he appeared on stage in a huge overcoat, his hands “bandaged” with wristwatches. The audience applauded wildly at his appearance, though the actor didn’t say a word. He then opened his coat, revealing a huge grandfather clock. Pointing at it, he simply said: ‘It ticks, I shut up, it ticks, I shut up’. Two days later, the great actor was dead. Rumor has it that Russian soldiers killed him. Officially, Tanase died of kidney failure, but the cause is once again in question – a course of about 20 aspirin a day recommended by his doctor. (Ciprian Plăiașu, historia.ro)

LINES:

• “After you drop off the coffees, you go and clean the Lord. You look here and there in the paper basket. You know.” – Elvira Caratase (Margareta Pogonat)
• “Monsieur it says, monsieur we spell. “ – Vasilică (Marin Moraru)
• ”No booze, no cigarettes, no love! (…) Well, veterinarian, (…), you give me a cure so I can smoke, drink, sing, dance! “ – Costică Caratase (Toma Caragiu)
• ”You watch me at the table, in bed and in the closet…“ – Costică Caratase (Toma Caragiu)
• ”When I’m full I’m a lamb, when I’m hungry I’m a beast!“ – Costică Caratase (Toma Caragiu)
• ”Costică! Your mistress is looking for you.” – Elvira Caratase (Margareta Pogonat)
• “The greatest actor the Romanian Country has ever had: Costică Caratase.” – Costică Caratase (Toma Caragiu)
• “We know for sure that (Caratase) is preparing the most violent attack on the Legionary Movement.” – Guță Popescu (Ion Besoiu)
• “But at that theater… did any fresh meat pop up at that theater?” – Carol the Second (Gheorghe Șimonca)
• “I don’t need any protection. In this country, I give protection to whom it’s due!” – Costică Caratase (Toma Caragiu)
• “You’re either stupid, or you’re from Transylvania!” – Costică Caratase (Toma Caragiu)
• “There in front of everyone he slapped me. It means I’m dear to him.” – Mărioara (Carmen Berbecaru)
• “Do you want to stop this people from laughing? “Will you stop them from laughing? At your lies, at your ridicule, at your stupidity, at your thievery, at your swollen words! Well, for two thousand years, these people have been laughing with or without will. And when they had to, they raised the axe. And you want them to stop laughing, to stop loving, to walk the streets with long faces like your impotent saints. Stop the Romanian people from laughing? Burn Caragiale in the square? What should the Romanian people do? Sing psalms all day? Should they worship your Captain, this Zdrelea, or whatever you call him?” – Costică Caratase (Toma Caragiu)
• This is what you want: a gray and sad Romania. No play, no laughter, no joy. Shoot. Bullet against laughter.” – Costică Caratase (Toma Caragiu)
• “(They) must be stopped. Stop selling this country to Hitler. Stop the killing. Stop poisoning young souls. Stop making this beautiful and good country of ours a concentration camp. A prison. Stop making the Romanian people a victim or an executioner. Stop the green plague. Cut Hitler off. If you want to rejoice. If you want to laugh. If you want to remain human.” – Costică Caratase (Toma Caragiu)

ARTICLES:

• “The Actor and the Savages” – iiccmer.co.uk
• “The Actor and the Savages”, a silent outcry against the communist dictatorship – historia.co.uk
• “The Actor and the Savages” – adevarul.co.uk
• “The Actor and the Savages”, or what can stand in the way of aggression – cristinastanciulescu.co.uk
• The Romanian genius who gave us “Operation Monster” and “The Actor and the Savages”. Who was the director Manole Marcus – playtech.com
• Do you remember… Manole Marcus – adevarul.ro
• Another “dialog at a distance”, Manole Marcus – Iulian Mihu – istoriafilmuluiromanesc.ro
• Toma Caragiu wanted to die standing up – jurnalul.ro
• Marin Moraru: the brilliant actor with the soul of a child – radioromaniacultural.ro

This premiere is part of a national archive project supported by the Romanian National Film Centre.
Special thanks goes to the Romanian Filmmakers Union and to the Romanian Film Archive.

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