HOOKED - LOW BUDGET, HIGH EMOTIONS

  Hooked  is the first film from Romanian filmmaker Adrian Sitaru. It is a low budget film and was shot in only ten days.  The majority of the film is shot using hand held cameras and  is meant to intensify the relationship between the characters. The film has been in competition in numerous film festivals. It has won several awards including Best Actress at the Thessaloniki Film Festival, Best Screenplay at the Mons International Festival of Love Films, and New Visions/New Voices award at Palm Springs Film Festival.

 Hooked  is the story of Mihai and his married lover. Mihai is math teacher not happy at work because he is forced to abandon his morals and is frustrated that his lover is still with her husband. So they decide to leave the stress and bustle of Bucharest behind them and drive to the country for picnic. Along the way they have a argument and hit a prostitute played by Maria Dinulesco. When they believe her to be dead they take her along unsure what to do with the body. Along the way  Ana/Violet, the prostitute wakes up in daze and not sure what to tell her, they take her to the picnic. Ana, despite being dazed from being hit by the car, is a little loopy and invasive, but in no way is she mad. She continues to stick her nose in the couples affairs and flirts with both of them. Despite driving the already tense couple crazy, by the end of the day they realize how much they love each other.

 Maria Dinulesco was here in Miskolc to answer some questions. She insisted that the movie has no moral and it is up to the viewer to find meaning in the message of the story. She went on to say it is important to see the relationship between  the characters in the film. Despite its extremely low budget and rushed production schedule, the film was extremely easy to watch and both the characters and dialogue was very realistic.

(MZ)