clewis2666 Those who like action in their films (as one reviewer well put it: guns, paedophiles, crazy driving, genius scientists, blacks and drugs, stock exchange, apocalypse, Bruce Willis saving the world, Asian crime gangs, etc --things that have no place in Romanian society)- will not like this film. I confess I found it a little boring until the final emotional scene where the actress playing the wife gives an astonishing portrayal of grief, which I will never forget. Utterly convincing. The rest is a deliberately mundane account of adultery between two very uninteresting, i.e. normal, people, who obviously enjoy, whether they know this or not, the thrill and the deception -- playing their pre-ordained roles in the time-honoured way of us human beings. One can admire the artistry with which the mundane is conscientiously portrayed but asking at the same time 'Do I need to see this? I prefer Bruce Willis'. The saving grace, for me, was, as I have said, the betrayal scene and the subsequent reaction of the wife. The other two are really no more than ciphers. The husband is completely without charm,vigour or grace, whomever he is with and the mistress is just that, and no better for being a professional (dentist). So film buffs may rave, while I acknowledge the qualities of the film, but say that it is not really the sort of material which I like to spend 90 minutes of my timer with. Correction: true, but that actress added something to my life in the last 15 minutes of the film.

bandw I questioned whether I wanted to see yet another examination of a failed marriage, but I am glad I watched this. The thing that sets it apart is its total believability. There are no high voltage fireworks as in many movies such as a Bergman film, where the partners rip the flesh off of each other by rehashing all possible old wounds. Instead we get a drama that plays almost like a documentary.I confess that about half way through I was feeling that things were going a bit slow by concentrating on routine daily chores, like getting groceries, shopping for presents, taking the daughter to the dentist, and so forth. But this served to establish that the life of the couple Paul and Adriana had devolved into little more than daily routine. You could almost extrapolate what their lives would be until the end. And I think this is what Paul was seeing when the opportunity to change course presented itself by his striking up a relationship with the attractive Raluca. This is not to say that there are no dramatic scenes to be had later in the film, but those scenes are well motivated by what has gone before. The scene where Paul tells Adriana the truth is exceptionally well acted and is a bit painful to watch, since it is so honestly scripted. You may come away feeling that Paul has made a very bad, or even deplorable, decision, but you understand his motivations and realize he is not a monster. I think this movie captures the essence of thousands of similar stories that are being played out every day in real life.

makeuplover69 Paul a married, middle aged, banker has a midlife crisis and is in a months long affair with his daughter's dental assistant. He struggles with staying with his wife and wanting to be with his much younger mistress.It is obvious from the beginning there is no spark left in the marriage and both Paul and his wife Adriana are just going through the motions of family life. They discuss their daughter's need for braces, her piano lesson schedule, and what to pick up at the supermarket. While their daughter brings them happiness the marriage seems mundane and lifeless.Paul has illicit trysts with his lover in her apartment and lies to his wife about being on the road for business. His lover gives him the freedom he desires and does not put any pressures on him to leave his wife. He comes and goes at will and that suits him to a point. When he is not with her he is thinking of her and finds excuses to see her.The best scene of the whole movie is when Paul confesses to Adriana about his affair and who it is with. It is a very emotional and traumatic time for Adriana who I believe gives the best performance.

stefanstatescu What I loved most about this movie is it's realism. The actors give a great performance and it's just the way it's supposed to be. Everything feels real, the arguing, the conversations, the situations. It all flows naturally and you can relate to the characters and think: "wow, I've been there," or "I've definitely seen that before." The tension, the fights between Paul and his wife are the real thing. Drama is not forced, it's not stupid, etc...I do not know if a non-Romanian viewer will feel the same but I thought this movie portrayed life exactly as it is, without gloss or forced sub-plots, and that is very rarely seen. It may be a cultural thing however. Probably American culture is very different , and that's why guns, pedophiles, crazy driving, genius scientists, blacks and drugs, stock exchange, apocalypse, bruce willis saving the world, Asian crime gangs, etc (things that have no place in Romanian society) never feel real to me.Anyway, I'm sure this movie will not feel real only to Romanians, but to many other peoples around the globe.Btw, there is a user review by mmguica (from the United States) in which he/she says: "The characters had incredibly little depth." I totally disagree. Let's take the main character. There is not much depth shown, that is true, but I(and I'm sure other Romanians) instantly understand the character, He is a middle class man working hard and trying to bring good money. There is not much to him because he is a normal Romanian. He is not excessive, he is not crazy, gay, unstable, dramatic. He is a normal, emotionally stable man that's trying to support a household. And there are millions like him.