What makes a good man, a good father, a good citizen?
These are the questions raised by Cristian Mungiu’s Graduation. Adrian Titieni plays Dr. Romeo Aldea, a husband and father living in Romania. When his daughter Eliza (Maria Dragus) is sexually assaulted right before her final exams, she tries to emotionally survive. Romeo, on the other hand, tries his best to ensure that she can pass her exams and secure a scholarship that would get her out of Romania. Having left the country under communism before returning in 1991 – a decision he regrets – he is desperate for his daughter to escape the dysfunctional and corrupt country.
But corruption is exactly what Romeo must engage in to help his daughter – or what he thinks will help. His actions are both infuriatingly procedural and understandable, as he undermines her pain and pushes her to take her exams. Behind closed doors, he steps away from his ethical professional code and pulls strings, including pushing the Vice Mayor up on the liver transplant list so that Eliza’s exams get corrected by the right people.
Romeo’s actions display not only a “fix it” version of masculinity, but are also a personal manifestation of the country’s malaise – which is further reflected in the barren landscapes. In one scene where Romeo is driving Eliza, a camera sits with her in the backseat, capturing the endless loop of grey buildings and neglected public spaces. That Romeo’s family also suffer a slew of minor but nerve-wracking incidents in a row – an attempted burglary, a minor car accident, a family emergency – is a further nod to the all-pervasive sense of paranoia.