Wallachia, 1835. A Gypsy, Carfin, had an affair with Sultana, the wife of a powerful local boyar, and fled. The boyar thus hires policeman Constadin and his son Ionita to track down Carfin and bring him back for punishment. Traveling on their two horses, Constadin and Ionita wander aimlessly through the countryside. They encounter several people: a group; an antisemitic priest; a fisherman... Finally, thanks to a tip, they enter a farm and find Carfin and a Gypsy boy hiding there. They sell the boy to a slave market and continue to stop at a brothel. When Carfin tells them that Sultana initiated their love encounter, Ionita tries to persuade Constadin to let the man go. However, Constadin follows the law and returns Carfin to boyar, who, as a punishment, cuts Carfin's testicles off. Disgusted, Constadin and Ionita leave the estate.
An astringent and bitter achievement, "Bravo!" is a pessimistic commentary on the history and era of a 19th century mentality, summarized in the finale where the two protagonists lament how it is useless to try to reform and change the people in the world, based on selfishness and narrow-mindedness. Director Radu Jude films "Bravo!" as a typical European art-film, with static long takes and even in black-and-white cinematography, but combines it also with the typical American style of a road movie: the two protagonists wander through the countryside, searching for the fugitive, which offers Jude a chance to cram as many side-characters as possible on their journey, which all have something to say about the Eastern European society of that time: the Jew-hating priest, for instance, is a symbol for antisemitism; the farmers illustrate the life of poverty of the lower, working class, etc. Through all these episodes, Jude encompasses many themes: life, death, poverty, slavery, integrity, sex (in the brothel episode), injustice, fate and fatalism. The notion of injustice is especially interesting: policeman Constadin follows the law by the book, but is disappointed that there is no trial by the law from the boyar, just savage revenge. While the writing is too routine and schematic, some dialogues manage to ignite here and there ("The poor pray to God much more than the rich"; "What kind of a country is this when the ass becomes the head..."). Unfortunately, the movie is a tad too monotone, overlong and grey, thus not suitable for everyone's taste.
Grade:++
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