The Aesthetics of Discomfort in Cristi Puiu’s Aurora

Ion INDOLEAN

Abstract:

This paper discusses the spectator’s discomfort triggered by Cristi Puiu’s film Aurora. In 2010, when it was launched, the film stirred heated controversy between those who labelled it as masterpiece and those who were bothered by the dreariness contemplated by the Romanian filmmaker. Starting from the critics’ reactions, Puiu’s public interventions and a series of audience reception theories, the paper sets to explain why the film Aurora causes unease.

Keywords: Cristi Puiu, Romanian New Wave Cinema, Realism, Aurora, 2010, Discomfort, Audience Reception Studies, Observational Cinema, Hyperrealism

DOI: 10.24193/ekphrasis.27.6

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