ENESCU - Flayed Alive
a film by Toma Enache
February 26, 2025 at 7:00 PM
𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐂𝐔𝟕𝟎
Starting January 2025 we begin a series of special screenings to commemorate 70 years since the passing of our genius composer, George Enescu. The series of special screenings with the first artistic film dedicated to him begins on January 25 at the Romanian Athenaeum and will continue throughout the country and the world throughout 2025!
"Enescu - Flayed 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 battles he fought 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 the soul of a genius, in a film that blends music, history, and personal drama.
Director Toma Enache emphasizes in an interview for 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 who love people who dedicate themselves to their talent and sacrifice themselves to leave behind something great. In fact, this is what the opera Oedip is about, George Enescu's magnum opus."
"Nineteenth-century literature brought us various examples of 'Feminine Romantic Love', but the history of everyday life also tells us the other side of the coin. In the simplest cases, the presence of the 'masculine' was inevitable, at least for the narratives of the time (today we would also talk about other relational dimensions). In some cases then, the bilateral '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) that pushed the two secret lovers to suicide, to the extreme gesture, to be able to live in eternity the love that on this earth was forbidden to them. In the story of the Romanian musician, despite knowing that the princess loved him, George Enescu is the emblem of a 'Masculine Romantic Love' that is not afraid to show itself in all its sweetness, in all its romanticism.
Toma Enache makes us 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 superlative!" — Master Nino Graziano Luca, Director of Compagnia Nazionale di Danza Storica
The film was selected in the official selection and won awards at several profile festivals, including: International Sound & Film Music Festival – ISFMF Croatia; Cyprus International Film Festival – Golden Aphrodyte 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, the director of the film "ENESCU, Flayed 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 Italian Chamber of Deputies and the International Council of Dance UNESCO.
The film benefits from 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. Costumes are created by Italian Stefano Nicolao, famous for his work on Oscar-winning productions, and the music brings together 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 by the Romanian National Radio Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Horia Andreescu. In addition, violinist Alexandru Tomescu adds a distinct touch to this sound production. The soundtrack also includes an original musical fragment, performed by George Enescu on the violin and Dinu Lipatti on the piano.
On the film's Facebook and Instagram page, you can find the 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 - Flayed Alive" in your city!
About the film:
George Enescu, a genius 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 bound to her husband and children. Fate frees her from marriage, but will it be enough for them to be happy together? And the opera? Will Enescu ever be able to compose it?
Title: "Enescu - Flayed Alive"
Duration: 120 minutes
Rating 12+
Soundtrack: French National Orchestra, conducted by 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
ENESCU, Flayed Alive
Critic Gustavo Coletti for Times of Cinema:
"When I finished watching 'ENESCU, Flayed Alive' I immediately searched for the biography, not of Enescu, but of 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 staged many plays in Bucharest. He has always been appreciated for the quality of his projects.
The film's credits are visually fascinating. Statues that decompose as representations of a looming tragedy. I accessed Enescu through the director: brilliant violinist and composer, who plans to compose an opera, in love with a married princess, who is also a mother. A true story, very close to fiction.
I really liked the reconstruction of a fascinating period, because we are talking about the early years of the 20th century, especially in Romania. Attention to detail in costumes and set design does not go unnoticed, and the most intense moments generate an eclectic vibe between cinema and theater, they shine with the brilliance of explosions, sometimes seeming supernatural.
It is difficult to find in modern cinema so much respect for the spirit of classic narratives. The style and atmosphere of the film remind us of the great masters of Italian or German cinema. Toma Enache makes no compromises in the pursuit of excellence."
ATHENS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL OF ART
"'ENESCU, Flayed Alive' is a triumph not only as a period piece or biographical film, but also as a philosophical exploration of the human condition. It tackles eternal questions about love, creativity, and meaning with grace, but also with depth, inviting the audience to reflect on the issues of genius and the sacrifices required by the desire for perfection."
As George Enescu himself said, "The artist shows humanity the way to harmony, which is happiness and peace". Toma Enache's film does just that - through its beauty, depth, and emotional tribute to an artist who lived and loved passionately, it reminds us all of the power of art to illuminate the path to harmony both in life and in love."
ROME INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL — PRISMA
"Like the notes of a symphony, every moment in Enescu's life intertwines with nuances, pauses, and tones that go beyond the simple melody. Between one note and another, in the silent, profound space between them — the interval, the unspoken accord — there is a vast range of hidden emotions and meanings that give shape and 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 is built between the shadows of his loves, his losses, and his endless quest for beauty and truth."
"Enescu, Flayed Alive" is more than a film or a concert: it is an EXPERIENCE that must be lived. (Emil Călinescu, CINEMIL)
"Between Enescu's life and art, there was no border. And Toma Enache captures exactly this invisible (non)border!
Since 'The Man of God' I haven't seen people in a whole hall silent, at the end, quietly reading the credits for minutes and minutes on end, without anyone daring to disturb even with the applause deserving of a gala...
It was as if we had died with Enescu, this man flayed alive in life, alive among us in death!" (Floriana Jucan - Q Magazine)
#EnescuFlayedAlive #TomaEnache #RomanianFilm #Cinema #GeorgeEnescu
#ClassicalMusic #IndependentFilm
We look forward to meeting you with ENESCU!
For further details regarding the above event, please contact the organizing entity: ,Asociatia C.L.A. La Steaua, CIF ,12708800 BUCHAREST
