While running around for Christmas gifts and decorations, as well as preparing the traditional food, it wouldn’t hurt to stop for a minute and think about the most beautiful moments in 2019, the greatest achievements, and make a mental note of what we would like to pursue in the following year. To think of our loved ones and try to be more present and mindful. Or, better yet, sit down with a big box of popcorn and see what’s new in theaters or on Netflix. After all, we are on vacation, right?

TO BE WATCHED IN CINEMAS:

– Timebox (dir. Nora Agapi; documentary) – Professor Ioan-Matei Agapi, an 80-year-old photographer and cameraman from Iași, Romania, owns a unique collection of 16mm films and photographs documenting almost fifty years of the city’s history. His daughter, also a filmmaker, has decided to make a film about her father’s archives. In the unconventional surroundings of his old apartment, he reminisces about the past until one day, Ioan is informed that he must leave or be evicted from the apartment where he has spent the past 40 years.

For more details on Timebox, I recommend the exclusive material for Films in Frame – Time Crystals. An interview with Nora Agapi, about Timebox.

The film can be watched on Friday, December 20th, from 6:15 pm at Union Cinema.

– Zavera (dir. Andrei Gruzsniczki; drama) – Ștefan is a middle-aged businessman who developed a construction business together with his lifelong friend, Nic. After the suspicious death of Nic, being under the pressure of taking over the management of their business, Ștefan is facing an existential crisis. During the next six days that follow Nic’s death, step by step Stefan uncovers lies and small compromises related to Nic and now he has to deal with them to come to terms with his new life.

Zavera can be watched on Saturday, December 21st, at  Union Cinema, from 8 pm.

– Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (dir. JJ Abrams; fantasy) – I have no connection whatsoever to the Star Wars series (on the contrary), but thinking about the most enthusiastic fans, I felt I had to recommend Episode IX to the others. I’ll put here the official description because I’m sure you already know what it’s about: “The surviving Resistance faces the First Order once more as Rey, Finn and Poe Dameron’s journey continues. With the power and knowledge of generations behind them, the final battle commences.” Interesting.

The film opens in Romania on December 20th and can be watched every day this weekend in pretty much all cinemas in Bucharest (even at Europa Cinema).

– The Paper Will Be Blue (dir. Radu Muntean; action) – Here are the words of the director: “[The film] does not offer a historical perspective in the same way History Channel does, but aims to restore the general atmosphere of December 22-23, 1989 from the perspective of the small actors present at the events. It’s a story that reflects the loss of innocence of a generation and depicts the national uprising that brought to light both the best and the worst in us. Our solidarity spirit, as well as our selfishness and malice that have accumulated through decades of frustration.” The film received two awards at Sarajevo International Film Festival in 2006.

We can watch it on Friday, December 20th, from 5:00 pm at Eforie Cinema.

FEELING LAZY? HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN WATCH AT HOME:

– Marriage Story (dir. Noah Baumbach; comedy, romantic) – If you’ve been on Facebook on the last few days, you’ve surely heard of this movie. Everyone talks about it, so out of fear of FOMO, I thought I’d talk about it too. The official description mentions that Marriage Story is an incisive and compassionate look at a marriage breaking up and a family staying together. Sounds interesting so far, right? Not to mention that the protagonists are Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson. I can already guess what you will watch tonight on Netflix.

Marriage Story can be watched on Netflix, lying on the sofa, by yourself or not, right here.

– Alone at My Wedding (dir. Marta Bergman; drama) – The film follows the story of Pamela, a young Roma woman, spontaneous and funny. She lives with her grandmother and her little girl in a small hut where the three of them share a bed. Dreaming of freedom, Pamela embarks on a journey into the unknown, breaking away from the traditions that suffocate her. She hopes that marriage will change her own destiny, as well as her daughter’s. A story about the courage and determination to overcome your condition.

The film can be watched on Saturday, December 21st, on Cinemax 2, no earlier, no later than 3:55 pm.

– I Am an Old Communist Hag (dir. Stere Gulea; comedy) – The quiet provincial life of spouses Emilia and Țucu turns upside down when their daughter returns from Canada, together with her American fiancé. What should have been a happy event quickly turns into a complicated and at the same time funny situation.

The movie can be watched on Saturday, December 21st, at 8:15 pm on Antena Stars.

– Metrobranding (dir. Ana Vlad & Adi Voicu; documentary) – While people in Western Europe were used to choose between hundreds of brands, the communist Romanian used to have a different experience: all our life we lived with only one brand for each basic product. Imagine the importance that this ‘mono-brands’ could acquire for the lives of those who made them and for the lives of those who consumed them. The Relaxa mattress, the Drăgășani sneakers, the Pegas bicycle, the Mobra motorcycle, the Fieni bulbs and the Ileana sewing machine were once the stars of the Romanian golden era, and now are the characters in Metrobranding.

The movie can be watched on Saturday, December 21st, on TVR 3 at 11:00 pm.

HOW ABOUT SOME TV SERIES?

We’ll get back with the Movies for the Weekend series in February 2020, so I thought of recommending you something that lasts more, in case you feel something’s missing. And since TV series go great with cabbage rolls, I recommend Rotten, a super interesting and educational series on Netflix, should you want to learn about the food industry, a real eye-opener this one. Or some Peaky Blinders or Stranger Things, why not?

Romina Banu

Photographer and editor; she co-founded Dissolved Magazine together with Melissa. For Films in Frame she gathers film and TV series recommendations for lazy weekends and she writes about interesting projects from the film industry. Other than that, she likes traveling, chilling with her cats and sleeping.