The Phanom Father, directed by Lucian Georgescu, was selected in the official competition for debut features at the 35th edition of the Montreal Film Festival (18th to 28th of August, 2011), the only A Class competitive event in North America.
An initiatic road-movie, The Phantom Father used as a starting point the short story „Almost Oriental” of American writer Barry Gifford („Wild at Heart”, „Lost Highway”, „Perdita Durango”) who also has a cameo in the film. A bitter sweet comedy, the film tells a double love story: on one hand, the one between American professor, Robert Traum (Marcel Iureş, in a role equally impressive and unprecedented), back in the home land of his father and uncle – the latter, a famous novelist, and the former, a gangster from Chicago – and Tania (Mihela Sîrbu, whose acting was appreciated by Variety as a „formidable debut”) and, on the other hand, the love for old cinema, nomad, popular, naive and generous. A tender and nostalgic homage brought to a past era, Tthe Phantom Father combines stylistically the postmodern and classical cinema, assisted by the Liviu Mărghidan’s photography as well as by the original soundtrack by Johannes Malfatti, which joins classic hits such as Supertramp’s Breakfast in America.
Along with Marcel Iureş and Mihaela Sîrbu, the film also features Valer Delakeza, Mihai Constantin, Mimi Brănescu, Victor Rebengiuc, Mariana Mihuţ, Nicodim Ungureanu, Vitalie Bantas, Marcello Cobzariu and Mirela Oprişor.
The Phantom Father marks the debut in feature film of Lucian Georgescu, writer, producer, film critic (Member of FIPRESCI), lecturer at the National University of Theatrical Arts and Cinematography in Bucharest. The movie had an extraordinary preview sceening during this year’s edition of Transilvania International Film Festival.
The Phantom Father is distributed in Romania By Transilvania Film, and it will be released this fall.