Synopsis
Philanthropy (Filantropica, 2002) is a Romanian tragicomedy by Nae Caranfil you can watch online on iFILM. Ovidiu, a Bucharest schoolteacher pushing forty, is sure he's a great writer in waiting — but he lives on a teacher's tiny salary.
Everything tips over when he falls for Diana, a stunning and very high-maintenance model no schoolteacher could ever afford. Enter Pepe, a soft-spoken local "godfather" whose foundation, Filantropica, has turned street begging into a slick business with scripts, roles and a cut for the house. Ovidiu gets pulled in, and the line between who he really is and who he's playing starts to blur.
Caranfil delivers a sharp, mean-spirited satire of post-communist Bucharest, where pity is sold like a service and honesty never pays; it runs on poisonous dialogue and Gheorghe Dinică's wonderful turn as Pepe. A strong pick for anyone who likes bitter Eastern European comedy. Stream Philanthropy online on iFILM.
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