ENESCU - Skinned Alive
a film by Toma Enache
January 26, 20325, 6:00 PM
Palace of Culture Targu Mures
𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐂𝐔𝟕𝟎
From January 2025, we begin the special screenings series as a tribute to the 70th anniversary of our genius composer George Enescu's passing. The special screenings series with the first feature film dedicated to him starts on January 25 at the Romanian Athenaeum and will continue across the country and worldwide throughout 2025!
"Enescu - Skinned Alive" tells the extraordinary and tumultuous journey of one of the greatest Romanian composers and violinists, George Enescu. The film explores his inner world, revealing not only his immense talent but also the intense personal struggles he faced throughout his life. At the heart of the story is his passionate and often heartbreaking love with Princess Maruca Cantacuzino, a relationship that shaped his destiny and the course of his music. Through sensitive and profound direction, Toma Enache presents an emotional exploration of a genius's soul, in a film that combines music, history, and personal drama.
Director Toma Enache highlights in an interview for the London Director Awards: "Few musicians in history have been so unanimously acclaimed as George Enescu. The great cellist Pablo Casals described him as 'the greatest musical phenomenon since Mozart,' and for Yehudi Menuhin, his student, he was 'one of the wonders of the world.'"
Our film is for all those who love music, love stories, for all those who admire people dedicated to their talent, sacrificing themselves to leave something great behind. In fact, this is what it's all about in the opera Oedip, the magnum opus of George Enescu."
"The 19th-century literature brought us various examples of 'Romantic love in the feminine,' but the history of daily life also tells the other side of the coin. In the simplest cases, the presence of 'the masculine' was inevitable, at least in the narratives of the time (today we would also talk about other relational dimensions). In some cases then, the bilaterality of 'woman-man' in the suffering of love was clear. Think of the love between Heinrich Von Kleist and Henriette Vogel (a married woman who could not leave her husband), which drove the two secret lovers to suicide, to the extreme gesture, to be able to live eternally the love that on this earth was forbidden to them. In the story of the Romanian musician, despite knowing the princess loved him, George Enescu is emblematic of a 'Romantic Love in the masculine' that isn't afraid to show itself in all its sweetness, in all its romanticism."
Toma Enache allows us to experience its sweetness and romanticism in every moment of the film, directing a perfect cast of actors in every role. Above all, the protagonists are superb!" — master Nino Graziano Luca, director National Company of Historical Dance
The film was scheduled in the official selection and won awards at several festivals, including: International Sound & Film Music Festival – ISFMF Croatia; Cyprus International Film Festival – Golden Aphrodite CYIFF; Five Continents International Film Festival; Rome Prisma Film Awards; Florence Film Awards; Athens International Film Festival of Art; Salerno International Film Festival and others.
Toma Enache, director of the film "ENESCU, Skinned Alive," was recently awarded the "Premio Cultura" prize at the cultural event "Leoni, Gattopardi di Sicilia," organized at Palazzo Donà dalle Rose, in Venice. This project was created and directed by Nino Graziano Luca, in collaboration with Countess Chiara Modica Donà dalle Rose, under the patronage of the Culture Commission of the Chamber of Deputies in Italy and the International Dance Council of UNESCO.
The film boasts a remarkable cast, with Mircea Dragoman as George Enescu and Theodora Sandu as Princess Maruca, alongside well-known actors such as Cezara Dafinescu, Manuela Hărăbor, Adrian Titieni, Cristian Sofron, Kira Hagi, Pavel Ulici, Filip Ristovski, Erica Moldovan, Codrin Dănilă, and the late Constantin Codrescu. The costumes are created by Italian Stefano Nicolao, famous for his work on Oscar-winning productions, and the music includes works by George Enescu and original compositions by Sebastian Androne-Nakanishi, named "Composer of the Year 2022" at the International Classical Music Awards.
The soundtrack is performed by the French National Orchestra, under the baton of Maestro Cristian Măcelaru, artistic director of the George Enescu Festival, and the Romanian National Radio Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Horia Andreescu. Additionally, violinist Alexandru Tomescu adds a distinctive touch to this sonic production. The soundtrack also includes an original musical fragment, performed by George Enescu on violin and Dinu Lipatti on piano.
On the film's Facebook and Instagram pages, there's a complete list of the date and location of each premiere. Check the list and don't miss the only chance to watch the film "Enescu - Skinned Alive" in your city!
About the film:
George Enescu, a brilliant composer and violinist, is at the peak of his career and dreams of composing an opera. He falls in love with Princess Maruca, who inspires and challenges him. Although she loves him passionately, Maruca is tied to her husband and children. Fate frees her from marriage, but will it be enough for the two to be happy together? And the opera? Will Enescu ever manage to compose it?
Title: "Enescu - Skinned Alive"
Duration: 120 minutes
Rating 12+
Soundtrack: French National Orchestra, under the baton of Maestro Cristian Măcelaru, and Romanian National Radio Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Horia Andreescu
Director: Toma Enache
Producers: Marta Maria Mocanu, Elena Enache
Release date: November 2, 2024
FILM REVIEW / Review film
ENESCU, Skinned Alive
Critic Gustavo Coletti for Times of Cinema:
"When I finished watching 'ENESCU, Skinned Alive,' I immediately sought the biography, not of Enescu, but of the director Toma Enache, because I was surprised by the quality of the film. I think I finally understood George Enescu after watching the two-hour film. Toma Enache has directed four feature films, starting in 2013, and has staged many theater plays in Bucharest. He has always been praised for the quality of his projects.
The film's opening credits are visually fascinating. Statues that decompose as representations of an impending tragedy. Enescu, through the director's vision: a brilliant violinist and composer planning to compose an opera, in love with a married princess who is also a mother. A true story, very close to fiction.
I greatly enjoyed the recreation of a fascinating period, as we speak of the early 20th century, especially in Romania. Attention to detail in costumes and set design doesn't go unnoticed, and the most intense moments generate an eclectic vibe between cinema and theater, with the brilliance of explosions, sometimes appearing supernatural.
It's hard to find so much respect for the spirit of classical narratives in modern cinema. The film's style and atmosphere remind us of the great masters of Italian or German cinematography. Toma Enache doesn't compromise in the pursuit of excellence."
ATHENS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL OF ART
"ENESCU, Skinned Alive" is a triumph not only as a period piece or a biographical film but also as a philosophical exploration of the human condition. It addresses the eternal questions of love, creativity, and meaning with grace and depth, inviting the audience to reflect on the genius's challenges and the sacrifices required in the pursuit of perfection.
As George Enescu himself said, "The artist reveals to mankind the path to harmony, which is happiness and peace." Toma Enache's film does just that - through its beauty, depth, and moving tribute to an artist who lived and loved passionately, reminding us all of the power of art to illuminate the path to harmony in both life and love."
ROME PRISMA INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL
"Just like the notes of a symphony, every moment of Enescu's life weaves through shades, pauses, and tones that transcend mere melody. Between one note and another, in the silent and profound space between them — the interval, the unspoken accord — there lies a vast range of hidden emotions and meanings that shape and give substance to his soul. Just as a symphony is made not only of notes but also of the distance that separates them, Enescu's existence builds between the shadows of his loves, his losses, and his endless quest for beauty and truth."
"Enescu, Skinned Alive" is more than just a movie or a concert: it's an EXPERIENCE you must live. (Emil Călinescu, CINEMIL)
"Between Enescu's life and art, there was no border. And Toma Enache captures exactly this invisible (non)boundary!
Since "Man of God," I haven't seen people in an entire theater remain silent at the end, reading the credits quietly for minutes, without anyone daring to applaud at the expected gala...
It seemed as if we died with Enescu, this man skinned alive in life, alive among us in death!" (Floriana Jucan - Q Magazine)
#EnescuSkinnedAlive #TomaEnache #RomanianFilm #Cinema #GeorgeEnescu
#ClassicalMusic #IndependentFilm
We await you for a meeting with ENESCU!
For more details regarding the above event, please contact the organizing entity: ,Association C.L.A. La Steaua, CIF ,12708800 BUCHAREST
