In a small village near the Moldova and Romanian border, a complacent police chief named Ilie (Iulian Postelnicu) toes the line with his daily duties while turning a blind eye to the low-level contraband carried out by the town’s powerful elite. But after the mysterious death of a local resident is swept under the rug by Mayor Constantine (Vasile Muraru) and The Priest (Daniel Busuioc), Ilie reluctantly springs into action, facing off against a deeply corroded and corrupt system of justice.

A deeply cynical, slow-burn Neo-noir that quietly crescendos to a shocking (and mordantly funny) climax, Men of Deeds, triumphed at the 2022 Romanian Gopo Awards where it won Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Screenplay and more.

For in-depth thoughts on Men of Deeds, please see my colleague’s review from its original theatrical release here.

Video Quality

Men of Deeds makes its Blu-Ray debut with a fantastic 1080p video presentation that showcases the striking cinematography well. The image is textured with a nuanced, natural color palette filling up the screen. The film deploys some deep colors when the expanses of vegetation are featured, which makes for a lush image. The lived-in production design and shooting locations provide impeccably clear textural details. The black levels are a touch raised in a few scenes, but largely they maintain their depth. The flesh tones are natural with a pleasing amount of detail present in close-ups. The presentation shows off a valuable amount of depth in each scenario. This Blu-Ray is a noble representation of this movie that accomplishes everything it needs to.

Audio Quality

Dekanalog gives this Blu-Ray a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that translates the soundscape without issue. Explosive moments are an intermittent part of this track, but exchanges of gunfire deliver some nice texture to the proceedings. Environmental sounds of the world saturate the surround speakers in a very immersive way. When the characters are traversing outside locales, some distinct ambient details flesh out the setting. Dialogue always comes through clearly without being clipped by any competing sounds. The score is nice and well-balanced while maintaining its fidelity. The audio track provides a top-notch experience full of nuances that bring this narrative to life exactly how it was intended. This film is presented in the original Romanian with optional English, French, and Italian subtitles.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Director Paul Negoescu, Lead Actor Iulian Postelnicu, Cinematographer Ana Draghici and Producer Ana Voicu provide an informative commentary track that gives insights into the production process, larger ideas behind the film, the shooting locations, and more.

Behind The Scenes Footage: A nearly seven-minute fly-on-the-wall look at the production of the film.

Promotional Interviews: A selection of brief interviews is provided in which the talent discuss their roles in the movie, the process of bringing it to life, the challenges faced along the way, how they prepared for the experience, and more.

- Iulian Postelnicu (1:36)

- Vasile Muraru (1:08)

- Crina Semciuc (1:37)

- Anghel Damian (2:21)

- Paul Negoescu (1:09)

Late (Paul Negoescu’s 2007 Student Film): A 23-minute short film in which an aspiring journalist is tasked with writing a story about one of his old teachers who is accused of a crime.

Theatrical Trailer (1:30)

Booklet: A multi-page booklet featuring essays by writer Laura Kern and filmmaker Graham L. Carter is provided here.

Final Thoughts

Men of Deeds is a slyly humorous and compelling crime narrative filled with misguided aspirations and unrepentant corruption. The audience can relate to the main character as he wrestles with whether to do the right thing when everything good seems to be happening to the worst people. The bones of the narrative are somewhat obvious upon first glance, but there are numerous revelations that keep you guessing until the end. This is a cool film with a smaller profile, and it is well worth the effort to seek it out. Dekanalog has released a Blu-Ray featuring a first-rate A/V presentation and a fine assortment of supplements. Recommended

Men of Deeds is currently available to purchase on Standard Edition Blu-Ray or with a Limited Edition Slipcover exclusively through Vinegar Syndrome.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Dekanalog and OCN Distribution have supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.