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THE BEAR

By Dan CHISU

LIBRA FILM PRODUCTIONS - as PROD

Family - Completed 2011

- Year of production
- 2011
- Genres
- Family
- Countries
- ROMANIA
- Languages
- ROMANIAN
- Budget
- 0.6 - 1 M$
- Duration
- 84 mn
- Director(s)
- Dan CHISU
- Writer(s)
- Dan CHISU
- Cast
- Serban PAVLU, Mihai CONSTANTIN, Magda CATONE, Claudiu BLEONT
- Producer(s)
- Tudor GIURGIU (Libra Film), Dan CHISU (Dakino)
- Synopsis
- Late June 1990. Bucharest State Circus.
  The general manager of the Bucharest State Circus was replaced after the Romanian Revolution of 1989. The thirty-something newcomer, Panduru, a former participant in the revolution, is uncommonly energetic and determined to prove himself capable of changing the face of the circus. Just a few days before the premiere of the first post-Revolution circus show, Panduru has to solve the circus’ major financial problem: the artists haven’t received their salaries in months.
  One day, the manager interrupts the rehearsals and convokes a general meeting with all the circus artists gathered on the stage, so as to share his brilliant idea: Bruin, the old, dying circus bear, will be sold to serve as a hunting trophy for a German amateur hunter who’s willing to pay good money to get his heart’s desire.
  Instead of being taken over by the tempting prospect of easy money, the artists decide against sacrificing the bear, which has been their companion for the last 20 years. As the sale was a done-deal long before it was announced as a proposition, this leaves Panduru with no other way out of this situation but to steal the bear and deliver it with the help of a professional hunter and of a gipsy wannabe gamekeeper.
  When the circus people discover the disappearance of the bear the following day, they don’t waste a moment in following fast upon the “thieves’” tracks, not even to take off their extravagant make-up and outfits and change into more suitable clothes, thus offering an unintentional show to anyone who crosses their path.
  From this moment on, the chase is underway. The circus people at some point split into three groups, to better track down the car with the stolen bear. Meanwhile, the gipsy man and the German hunter take a detour and stop to party at the wedding of the gipsy man’s daughter, whereas Panduru and the other man drive to their destination, the bear’s ultimate “performance stage”.
  After their wild reveals at the wedding, the German and the gipsy sing their way to the hunting location where they encounter the now free bear, mistake his friendly attempts to come closer for a vicious attack and run away, the gipsy abandoning his bicycle and the German his hunting riffle. Down the hill they encounter the circus people coming to the bear’s rescue and, together with the other two “partners in crime”, they all witness dumb-founded the most unlikely of scenes: the bear is now riding the bicycle around the hunting tower. It is, after all, what he had been doing his entire life.
  It seems like a happy ending: the circus people hug each other and hug the bear, who licks their hands and faces. Therefore they decide to give it back its freedom. The German will get his money back, the bear will remain alive, and everybody is happy. The gipsy invites everyone to his daughter’s wedding. However, Bruin’s freedom is not a long-lived one: attracted by a familiar scent, the bear goes back to the spot where another German hunter, Wilhelm, is waiting for his dearly-paid hunting trophy. Bang, bang...