Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World

For those seeking daring, exciting contemporary international cinema, look no further than the work of Radu Jude. The Romanian filmmaker takes a caustic, intelligent, no-prisoners approach to contemporary social and political hypocrisies with an inventiveness and clarity of purpose that most filmmakers today could only dream of. As evidenced by his recent work like Aferim! and Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn, he’s an irreverent artist keyed into his own aesthetic and cultural world view.

His latest, the acclaimed and exhilarating Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World, plays this Sunday, April 28, and next weekend at MoMI. In it, an exhausted, overworked, and underpaid film production assistant Angela (a staggering Ilinca Manolache) drives around Bucharest on her latest gig: filming work-accident victims auditioning to be in a safety equipment video for a German multinational corporation. At the same time, Angela maintains her own side project—a trash-talking, wildly profane TikTok alter-ego Bobiță.

Complicating matters, Jude intercuts her travels with clips from an existing Romanian movie: the feminist 1981 film Angela Moves On, following the travels of a female cab driver around the city’s same sights and locations. This anarchic satire is an unforgettable ride through the vulgar indignities of the 21st century. Featuring cheeky supporting appearances from the great German actress Nina Hoss and B-movie director extraordinaire Uwe Boll.

A MUBI release.