Marching On
Summer vacation rolls on tonight at Cinepub with "Cireșarii" (1984, dir. Adrian Petringenaru), the first in a trilogy of films adapted from Constantin Chiriță’s beloved children’s books.
"Cireșarii" evokes the month of June in Romanian, the time of ripening cherries and endless summer days. It is a name that captures the innocence of first loves, the courage of friendship, and the thrill of youthful adventures — a timeless symbol of adolescence in bloom.
Summer vacation rolls on tonight at Cinepub with "Cireșarii" (1984, dir. Adrian Petringenaru), the first in a trilogy of films adapted from Constantin Chiriță’s beloved children’s books. The story had already made it to the screen in the 1970s, in a TV series directed by Andrei Blaier; Petringenaru’s big-screen take would continue with "Aripi de zăpadă" (1985) and "Cetatea ascunsă" (1987).
We’re introduced to the "Cireșarii" gang — named after their Cherry Tree neighborhood — in the most straightforward way possible: an end-of-school-year Pioneer award ceremony. With plenty of energy and a bright future ahead, the kids collect their prizes: Captain Victor (Horațiu Medveșan) receives the trophy, his second-in-command Ionel (Robert Enescu) gets a medal, expedition chronicler Dan (Alex Rotaru) is handed the Golden Quill, while Maria (Alina Dumitrescu) and Lucia (Alina Croitoru) are met with warm applause. Teodor, nicknamed The Bear (Gabriel Sîrbu), is honored too, and in the crowd we spot Tic (Răzvan Baciu), Maria’s younger brother. The final „member" of the group bounds in on four legs — Țombi, a lively cocker spaniel.
The scene isn’t there simply for the sake of socialist-era propaganda — it’s a quick, clear way of telling us that these kids are hardworking and capable. Each has their specialty: Bear in athletics, Maria in poetry, Tic in boundless energy. It’s a far cry from the "Liceenii" series of films, where slackers and flower-crown dreamers could share the spotlight.
Their mission? An expedition to the Black Cave to chart a brand-new map. They’ve got flashlights, boots, backpacks — all they need is a boat. When one of the boys’ uncle (Ion Marinescu), a hunter, refuses to help, they improvise: a raft built from logs. Only half the team ventures underground, the others stay above, sending them Morse code messages. But signs in the cave — cigarette butts, chicken bones, liquor bottles — hint at something more sinister than stalactites. Outside, the hunter reappears, trying to frighten them away. What starts as an innocent exploration turns dangerous when they discover the cave is a stash house for stolen goods, neatly displayed like a department store window. Suddenly, the stakes are higher: survival first, then exposing the criminals with the help of the police.
Sometimes films that put their genre forward tend to fend off any discussion of themselves. Don't you understand the rules of the universe? It's just sci-fi. Don't understand why she would be attracted to him? It's a rom-com. In this case, the genre is children's films, and the two critics (Ioana Creangă and Eva Sîrbu), whose reviews of the movie can be found on the AaRC website, face the same dilemma. X, Y and Z doesn't work, but yes, it's a kids' movie, and the kids loved it. Their observations are spot on. For example, they note on the one hand the naturalness of the little kids' playfulness compared to the more stiff adult acting, and on the other hand they talk about the evenly distributed enthusiasm among the kids, covering their individual identity.
Their writing reflects the era — criticism that outwardly supported the product, with any sharper edges tucked neatly between the lines. It doesn’t come across as dishonest so much as artfully oblique. Perhaps most memorable is their snapshot of the film’s January 1985 screening in a cinema packed with children. That image — noisy, eager, and entirely of its moment — might matter more today than the film itself.
(Emil Vasilache, cinepub.ro)
This week's premiere: Cireșarii by Adrian Petringenaru, Thursday, date, at 09:00 p.m, on CINEPUB.RO
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