Collective

This masterfully observed film documents the events that took place in Romania when Colectiv, a Bucharest nightclub, burned down, killing 36 people and wounding numerous others, many of whom died later, not as a result of their burns but due to bacterial infection in state hospitals. It quickly becomes clear that the out-of-control death rate in Romanian hospitals is linked specifically to disinfectants provided by a local chemical company, and more broadly to the endemically corrupt nature of Romania’s mafia state. When Vlad Voiculescu, an earnest and genuinely honest young doctor, is appointed Minister of Health, it seems like things might change, but he faces an uphill battle with no political allies. The film follows Voiculescu, along with a crack investigative team at a national newspaper, as the disturbing but gripping narrative evolves. An important film that echoes the political situation in many other countries around the world.