REVIEW: Corruption is at the center of exquisite ‘Men of Deeds’
Photo: Iulian Postelnicu stars as police chief Ilie in Men of Deeds. Photo courtesy of Dekanalog / Provided by press rep with permission.
The new Romanian film Men of Deeds is a layered, masterful look at corruption in a small village and how one man can wake up wanting to do good, but always ends up doing something bad. Iulian Postelnicu plays the main character of Ilie, a police chief who is stuck in this small town with not many prospects for a better future. He dreams of one day owning an orchard and giving up the badge once and for all, and to do this, he has no problem looking the other way when small dustups happen in town.
But then something big happens in this small town — a murder — and it’s up to Ilie to investigate what happened. Will he keep his nonchalance and not seek justice for the family, or will he finally unearth the darkness that is pervading this community?
Men of Deeds is a fascinating character study, and Postelnicu is marvelous as the police chief. He is an understated character in the first half of the narrative, never wanting to work too hard or disrupt the status quo. His type of policing is low key, with him yelling the equivalent of, “What are you doing over there,” and then walking in the other direction. He doesn’t get in the way of the daily flows of this community, and that mostly works to everyone’s benefit.
The problems come with the body and also the fact that the mayor (Vasile Muraru) appears to be involved. There’s also a new police deputy (Anghel Damian) who would actually like to investigate matters, much to the chagrin of the police chief. Now it’s up to Ilie to either stay stuck in his ways as corruption takes over his jurisdiction, or actually put his badge to good use and try to find some answers.
Paul Negoescu directs the feature and does a marvelous job at keeping everything authentic and intimate. He is able to elicit solid performances from each actor, and the plot bubbles along to a shocking ending that finds Ilie stuck in more ways than one. Kudos to Radu Romaniuc and Oana Tudor for their brilliant screenplay, which expertly fleshes out the character of Ilie, making him a walking-talking conundrum, a man caught between his dreams and his reality.
Men of Deeds is a strong contender for Best International Feature Film at the Academy Awards. The movie has already earned six Gopo Awards, the Romanian equivalent to the Oscar, and it’s no wonder that the drama, with just enough dark comedy, has made its way to North America. Ilie’s balancing act between corruption and redemption is a fascinating story to follow, and Postelnicu offers a tremendous performance.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Men of Deeds (2023). Directed by Paul Negoescu. Written by Radu Romaniuc and Oana Tudor. Starring Iulian Postelnicu, Vasile Muraru and Anghel Damian. Running time: 105 minutes. Unrated. Rating: 
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