Chuck Norris vs. Communism

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I was young,

about seven or eight years old.

And someone said,

Lets go to a video night!

It was thrilling.

The whole context was thrilling.

Watching foreign films for the first time,

almost illegal,

because they werent allowed.

At least I felt that we were

watching things we shouldnt see.

Mom wouldnt let me watch that film.

It was considered...

-Too erotic?

-Yes.

Why is he doing that to her skirt?

Whats that? Look at her.

Once Upon a Time in America

with Robert De Niro.

Pretty Woman.

The Protector.

Nine and a Half Weeks.

Goose, Goose Im on your tail.

Top Gun, wait a minute, Top Gun!

Speaking of serious, dramatic films,

I saw Top Gun 38 times.

I remember the first film I saw.

It was Last Tango in Paris

with Marlon Brando.

It was like being hit over the head!

I couldnt imagine

a film like that could exist.

I felt like I was struck by lightning!

And what a film to start with!

Thats when I realized

how far behind the West we were.

In Romania,

capitalism has lived its last day.

The people are the true masters

and will remain masters of their destiny

and the riches of the country.

Television went from 20 hours

of broadcasting on two channels

to one two-hour broadcast per day.

Comrade Nicolae Ceausescus report,

a theoretical and practical contribution

meant to vigorously drive

economic and social life,

is the focus for the whole country.

To cut informative TV broadcasts

and to keep a population

of 20 million people,

to keep a whole country

in ignorance for years

is an act with very serious

long term consequences.

There was a crisis of films

in the cinema market,

but at the same time, the audience

had a huge appetite for films.

Then VHS films appeared,

video as we called it.

It felt amazing to do something illegal

during Communism,

something not communist.

Watching imperialist movies.

They were all dubbed by the same voice.

Films in English were

usually dubbed by Irina Nistor.

The whole country knew her voice,

but no one knew what she looked like.

Kiss me.

But youre sticky.

So what?

Its the most well known voice

in Romania after Ceausescus.

When I say, yes?

Now.

Easy.

I really wanted to know

what she looked like.

I didnt even think she had a body.

She was pure consciousness

She was the voice.

You work on commission, right?

Yes.

Big mistake!

Huge!

She was an entity.

I imagined her dubbing films

in her kitchen, making soup or...

Yeah, you could hear noises.

A brunette with long hair

and really strong.

I always had a feeling she was blonde.

Very beautiful.

She has this warm voice, a soft tone.

Thats how I saw her...

A feline, a model.

Thats how I imagined Irina Nistor.

Incredibly beautiful.

Divine.

Like a voice from a choir of angels.

In the 80s, I worked as a film translator

for Romanian State Television.

I didnt fit in there.

I didnt like it. I often had to translate

for the Ideological Commission.

It was a censorship committee that decided

what to broadcast and what to cut.

New Jersey, three months earlier.

Mom, I dont want to go to school.

Mrs. Wardrobe is impossible.

-I dont want to discuss this.

-No, cut this.

Mom, well be late.

Stop!

Too much food.

Products, look, look!

Whats the message?

That the West is a land of prosperity?

I dont think so.

-So were cutting this?

-Of course we are.

Mac, what are you doing?

To start with, I managed to find a TV.

I paid 20,000 LEI for this color TV.

It was a Sharp TV made in Japan.

The second step

was getting a video player.

A video player cost as much

as a Dacia car.

It was the equivalent of a new Dacia.

55,000 LEI.

-We started around 1985, I think.

-Yes.

When your husband went to Germany

and he brought a video player.

You couldnt buy a video player

in our shops.

They came in the evening,

around 20 people at first, young and old.

Then word spread

that I was screening films.

By morning I could have

around 2,000-3,000 LEI,

and a monthly salary at the time

was 2,000 LEI.

Video night at Barbus.

-What is it?

-Something with Chuck Norris.

-What time?

-8:
00. See you there.

Ill go tell the others.

-Wed talk like this...

-Yes, lets see a film.

At street corners, whispering.

Hey, can you make it?

Evening. Barbus showing films tonight.

-Yes? When?

-8:
00.

-Hows your mom?

-Good, thanks.

Theres a video night at Barbus tonight.

Come to Barbus,

hes showing films tonight.

Chuck Norris, action films.

8:
00, at Barbus.

So the first film I saw...

was...

in a one-bedroom apartment.

It smelled of mildew,

but none of that mattered.

A clock,

somewhere in the hallway, ticking.

-What are you doing here, Bogdan?

-Im here for the screening.

-You got money?

-I do.

Cmon.

People had a strong desire to know,

to learn about a society

that was forbidden.

We were all breathing in and out

at the same time, in the same rhythm.

And when the film started,

we would all savor every image.

Even the credits

at the beginning of the film.

Lone Wolf McQuade.

Chuck Norris gets a terrible beating.

And they lock him in his car.

An excavator digs a hole.

And they push him into the hole

with the car and cover him.

Then he wakes up, obviously.

And says, Ive got to get out of here.

No panic. No anger. He was in control.

I thought it was real.

I see myself,

mouth wide open, eyes peeled.

Its okay, well make it.

Of course I can do it! You can do it!

And he started the car.

And he got out!

Comrade Nistor.

-Do you have two minutes?

-Yes.

One day I was at work

and a colleague approached me.

A comrade is looking for a collaborator.

He has these new films

and he needs someone talented

like you to translate them.

I couldnt believe he was talking to me

where anyone could hear.

What films?

New ones.

He mentioned American films and VHS tapes,

of course I was immediately intrigued.

It was my only chance to see these movies.

Even if I knew there were risks.

The regime was becoming more suspicious

and afraid of sabotage.

So they were using fear,

the psychosis of surveillance,

which made people

watch their own behavior.

It made them suspicious of others

and probably made them

inform on one another.

Come in.

We went down to the basement,

which I thought was strange.

Good evening.

Good evening.

Im Engineer Zamfir.

You must be Irina Nistor.

Sit down please.

He gave me a test,

I had to dub Doctor Zhivago.

Please put your headphones on.

Are you the poet?

Yes.

I used to admire your poetry.

Thank you.

I shouldnt admire it anymore.

I should consider it absurdly personal.

Right?

Continue.

He seemed stern and very pragmatic.

He knew exactly what he wanted.

And it had to be done really quickly,

so he could make a decision.

I had no idea how long it was to last,

if it was for one film or for more.

I didnt know.

What would you like to be paid?

We started to negotiate

and I asked for 100 LEI.

That was the price of an Austrian

chocolate bar on the black market.

And he said,

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