FrogGlace In other words,this film is a surreal ride.

Mischa Redfern I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

Skyler Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

Staci Frederick Blistering performances.

John Smith I call upon the Romanian people to vote this movie so that we will have a Romanian movie in the top 250 greatest movies hits ! SO : vote Romanians vote ! Filantropica was the most beautiful and most exciting movie i have ever seen , and i am trying to be as objective as possible ! Us , the people of this beloved country Romania, have been trying to survive in this god-forgotten country for quite a while now ;) and i believe that we must not be the taken this right ... all we need is to join our forces and vote as much as we can !P.S. : i also believe that Sergiu Nicolaescu is one of the best film directors in the world maybe even more talented then Mr. Spielberg !Much Love , A proud Romanian!

irinaidu i totally liked this movie. not because it was good or bad but because it was the first Romanian movie that seemed to actually be a movie. the rest of Romanian movies seem to be theatrical plays that got caught on camera. and i could actually understand what they were saying because usually in Romanian movies the sound is so bad it makes you wish you had subtitles. so maybe this movie was not a subtle one, or a very hard to understand one, but it was definitely easy to watch( which is a big deal for a Romanian movie),close to reality ( unfortunately) and had some unforgettable lines that have became part of the popular culture. maybe if you are not Romanian you don't get what the big deal is, and why this movie is a big accomplishment and maybe it looks like other eastern European movies which would not be so surprising since we did kind of had he same history. but it is an important movie because it manages to be different: it's well directed, well filmed and it's entertaining! so hopefully the next Romanian films will only be better!

siderite I am used to Romanian movies being dark, verbally violent, poorly acted, poorly directed, wanting to shock, yet saying nothing. Most of them are like that, but not this one. This was actually a dark comedy with almost no violence. The threads of the story do end in despair, but not in tragedy, giving the viewer that "jigsaw puzzle completed" feeling.The acting of the main characters was superb, even the extras did their job well; the script contains a too complex and interesting story to be told here, all I can say is that it's a great tale; the music gives a Romanian feel to the movie and nicely selected for this particular idea; the directing has to be good, since almost none of the actors slipped, none of the scenes made me say "Cut" :) and the movie carried me from the first scene to the last with no discrepancies.This movie may have turned my pessimistic view of Romanian film-making around, along with "Asfalt Tango", which is a movie of the same caliber and quality (with the same great main actor ) and I am looking forward to good, watchable movies like these two, with great and original stories.

sjwegg Director Nae Caranfil wasn't short of Romanian anecdotes and stories before the screening of his fourth feature film when I saw it at the Palm Springs International Film Festival: Q: What's the difference between a Romania pessimist and optimist; A: "The pessimist says, 'Things couldn't possibly get worse;' the optimist says 'Oh yes they can.'" And when those attending revealed their knowledge of his native country was confined to the birthplace of Dracula, we were assured, with a knowing grin, that the film to follow would be "a dark, hopeless, miserable comedy." Well, three out of four isn't bad!Using stray dogs as metaphorical bookends the film purports to send up greed, education, governments and a host of social ills using charitable scamming as its glue. Unfortunately, in today's climate of real stories of charities making front page news through scandal or mismanagement the plot's major joke (fake married couple on the 10th anniversary in expensive restaurant, have no cash, big scene with on-the-take-waiter, do-gooder patrons pay off the inflated bill) seems more of a documentary than fiction, thus killing the satire.But the hero as failed writer provides a much better vehicle for black humour that sets up the funniest moments: the railway poet who recites for vodka, only to reveal that he has just two poems and neither of them are his; and wonderfully believable Philanthropy Foundation where writing the lines the for percentage-based fund-beggars on the cash-only payroll brings in a steady flow of charitable donations. Their motto is bang on: "An outstretched hand with no story to tell doesn't work." And so its savvy chairman (Gheorghe Dinica) writes the scripts that include a violinist (who's never played a note but has been coached on how to hold the instrument) that has given up playing in his despair (best to beg near government culture institutions) and climaxes with the beating literature teacher by day Ovidu (played with charming naivety by Florin Calinescu) which leads to a television appearance where a special account is set up for the public to contribute to this unfortunate couple whose only crime was to try and have one night out for their anniversary. Even the sub-plot of the literature teacher trying to seduce one of his most belligerent student's sister is filled with false fronts shallowness. But, it forces him to agree to the scamming so as to have the cash to artificially improve his lifestyle and attempt to bed her when, inevitably, his deception is revealed just on the point on entry. But like the too-forgiving Philip in Of Human Bondage Ovidu keeps going back for more, finally stealing from the foundation to pay the debts of his wayward student only to discover he's given the dough to the sister that wasn't (quelle suprise!). Oh well, at least he gets to keep the girl he's been fictitiously married to for the past decade, forever proving that lies can be lived into reality!Still, the film does provoke thought and is blessed with a knowing camera and a gypsy-esque score composed and performed by Marius Mihalache that adds much to the pace.But at our screening when the film broke-just fifteen minutes from the end-there were not a few of us who could have left then and there with enough of the story resolved to our satisfaction. However, being charitable, we dutifully stayed until the last ask was made.