The debut feature by Romanian director Adrian Sitaru – already acclaimed for his short films – follows the story of a young couple whose lives are turned so completely upside down over the course of a few hours that they reach a point of no return.
Mihai is a stressed-out teacher from Bucharest. After a trying week, he and his lover Sweetie decide to go on a picnic. However, the day takes a sharp turn when Sweetie accidentally runs over Ana, a prostitute who was lying in the road on their way out of town. Not realizing she is actually still alive, they attempt to bury the body in a nearby forest, and when Ana unexpectedly recovers, they feign concern for her well-being.
What ensues is a thrilling study of character and conscience. Ana joins the couple's picnic and then gradually ingratiates herself into their lives, manipulating them and playing them off each other. As Ana riles the lovers' tempers, stirring up jealousy and infidelity and feeding their insecurities, their relationship becomes irreparably changed.
The three leads make excellent use of Sitaru's intelligent dialogue, inviting us to feel a strong sense of empathy for the plight of their characters. Shot entirely with a hand-held camera, the film has a visual style reminiscent of Sitaru's short work. He uses this naturalistic aesthetic to build tension throughout the film, and this stylistic device is heightened by the contradiction between the characters' turbulent relationships and the serenity of their natural surroundings.
In recent years, Romanian cinema has seen a group of talented young filmmakers come into their own. Their insightful inquiries into everyday life signal a new era of sophistication in Romanian film, one that offers mature and thoughtful perspectives on a region of the world not often captured onscreen. In Hooked, Sitaru announces himself as another fine Romanian talent to be watched.
Dimitri Eipides
Adrian Sitaru was born in Romania and studied computer science and film directing. He has directed several short features for television and a number of short films, including the award-winning Waves (07). He worked on developing his second feature film this summer through the Cannes Film Festival's Cinéfondation Résidence programme. Hooked (08) is his debut feature film.