Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World

2023

2h 44m

IMDb RATING

7.0/10

YOUR RATING

Rate

POPULARITY

Play trailer

7 Videos

33 Images

Comedy

Drama

On behalf of a multinational company, a production assistant drives around the Romanian city of Bucharest, interviewing various citizens who have been injured due to work accidents to cast one of them in a “safety at work” video.

Directors

Radu Jude

Writers

Radu Jude(screenplay by)

Stars

Ilinca Manolache

Ovidiu Pîrșan

Nina Hoss

See production, box office & company info

Videos7

Photos33

Top cast

Angela Raducani

Doris Goethe

Angela Coman

Gyuri

Self

Directors

Writers

Radu Jude(screenplay by)

All cast & crew

Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

User reviews3

Review

Featured review

6/10

Radu Jude's latest film is a caustic, unfiltered critique that slices through the veneer of contemporary work culture like a hot knife through butter. At its core, this is a merciless examination of late-stage capitalism and gig-working that will leave you simultaneously laughing and wincing. The film's narrative follows Angela (played with raw, frenetic energy played by Ilinca Manolache), a delivery driver navigating the soul-crushing gig economy with all the excitement of a 5000-year old mummy. Her days are a blur of constant movement, endless deliveries, and bureaucratic absurdities that epitomize the modern workplace's most dehumanizing aspects. Jude brilliantly captures the exhaustion of workers trapped in a system that treats them as disposable resources rather than human beings. The true comedic genius of the film emerges through Ilinca's Bobita character, a TikTok-famous persona that absolutely steals the show. Her crude, hilarious digital alter ego becomes a weapon of social commentary, skewering the performative nature of online culture with razor-sharp wit. The Bobita sequences are laugh-out-loud funny, providing some of the most memorable moments in recent cinema. Visually, Jude experiments with an intriguing dual narrative approach, interweaving color and monochrome sequences that speak to different temporal and social realities. It's an ambitious technique that almost works. And here's where the film stumbles. The editing feels alternatingly jarring and boring, sometimes to the point of frustration. While the underlying stories are compelling, the directorial choices threaten to derail the entire viewing experience. Make no mistake: this is a film that deliberately makes you uncomfortable. The older generation is portrayed with a mix of bewilderment and mild contempt, highlighting the profound disconnect between different workforce generations. Their cluelessness isn't just a character trait; it's a systemic indictment. Despite its flaws, the film manages to be provocative and entertaining. It's not a smooth ride, but we conjecture that Jude wants us to feel the friction, to recognize the absurdity of our current work paradigms. It's a messy and uneven, but ultimately an important piece of cinema that will make you laugh, cringe, and potentially reassess your relationship with work. "Just don't expect too much" - ironically.

badelf01 Dec, 2024