The Didactics of Power
It all begins with a dream - or rather, a nightmare; it's a premonition of betrayal, of the loss of power, which haunts the ruler.
"Iancu Jianu, the Tax Collector” (1982, dir. Dinu Cocea) is the first part in the saga which follows Jianu (Adrian Pintea) the haiduk, a historical character transformed into a hero of a socialist epic, due to his acts of rebellion and spirit of social justice. The film focuses on his transition from the son of a wealthy family to a tax collector (a civil servant in charge of collecting taxes), against the backdrop of a tumultuous period in the history of the country at the beginning of the 19th century.
It all begins with a dream—or rather, a nightmare; it's a premonition of betrayal, of the loss of power, which haunts the ruler. Meanwhile, The region of Oltenia is on the verge of uprising, and Tudor Vladimirescu (to be ruler) is waiting for the right moment. In this context, Jianu, now a newly appointed tax collector, faces a series of moral dilemmas that place him at the crossroads of the political, social, and economic tensions of the time: between haiduks, the people, power, and rebellion.
The beginning of the film is striking in its apparent inability to maintain narrative coherence, sometimes even from one sequence to the next. However, once the focus shifts to the protagonist's dilemma, the story gains significant momentum. It might seem redundant to say, but through its protagonist, the film's obsession with tracing the winding path to power becomes clear. Jianu encounters nearly every possible example of leadership: from Tudor Vladimirescu, who has suddenly turned against the established order, to submissive nobles who are servile in order to preserve their status, to the impulsive haiduks. Yet, the hero is endowed with the ability to filter these experiences through his own compass (guided by the horrors of torture, the discontent of the masses, or the braids of a village girl) and choose his own path.
"Iancu Jianu, the Tax Collector” seeks to answer one fundamental question: how can you hold authority without compromising your ideals? Through duels and introspection, the film manages to convey its message, offering an answer to the classic leftist dilemma about the incompatibility of authority and justice. This effort, however, is somewhat lost in the second part, "Iancu Jianu the Outlaw," where the cinematic material is weakly developed, and the only strong element remains the subject's folkloric origins. The two parts of the film, both available starting today on CINEPUB, offer a broader perspective on the series dedicated to these rebel heroes, a series started by Dinu Cocea in 1966 with the film "The Outlaws".
(Emil Vasilache, cinepub.ro)
This week's premiere: Iancu Jianu, the Tax Collector by Dinu Cocea, Thursday, September 12th, at 9:00 p.m, on CINEPUB.RO
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