Directed by Andrei Gruzsniczki
Romania, 2009, 95 minutes
Cast: Andi Vasluianu, Simona Popescu, Vlad Ivanov, Dana Dogaru, Doru Ana, Mihai Dinvale, Gabriel Spahiu
Production: Fundaţia Arte Vizuale (FAV)

Reluctantly, security guard Aurel (Andi Vasluianu) lets his wife Irene go on a working trip to Cairo. Having had a breath of fresh air, she returns transformed and soon sets out again — but this time she does not come back. Aurel’s true ordeal begins as he sets out on his own journey: a search for his wife amidst dubious bureaucrats, criminal embassies and hateful in-laws. 

“Sharing themes as it does with some of the finest European thrillers – such as the nerve-wrecking The Vanishing (George Sluizer, 1988) – it’s hard to believe The Other Irene is, in fact, based on a true story. It reveals a political and bureaucratic landscape that is truly eerie. The clean cinematography, especially apparent in the mall where Aurel works, beautifully emphasizes the main character’s solitude and actor Andi Vasluianu performs the brooding desperation inside this antihero with incredible delicacy.” — Cambridge Film Festival