Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn ★★★★

Director: Radu Jude

Cast: Katia Pascariu, Claudia Ieremia, Olimpia Mălai, Nicodim Ungureanu, Alexandru Potocean and Andi Vasluianu

Released: Berlinale 2021

As the history books are written about Covid-19, there will be a lot to discuss and perhaps things we would like to forget. The good of humanity has outweighed the world’s negativities, but let us be honest, we always remember the bad stuff. Enter Radu Jude’s film Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn as he attempts to explore the human psyche in the aftermath of this horrible pandemic.

The film is broken into three chapters as Emi (Katia Pascariu), a school teacher, finds her career and reputation under threat after a personal sex tape is leaked on the Internet. Forced to meet the parents demanding her dismissal, Emi refuses to surrender to their pressure.

Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn is a harrowing and darkly comedic exploration into society. Jude’s career has been about breaking conformities and creating his own type of cinema, and deep within his Golden Bear winning film, this is what we get. Revenge Porn, far-right ideologies, racism, conspiracy theories and political unrest are topics we hear in the news daily. Jude utilises these topics to discuss how the world is currently being perceived.

The film opens up in a brutish manner as we see the sex-tape being filmed in front of our eyes. Jude is emphasising the normality of sex as it should not be anything to be embarrassed about. Once the tape is out on the web, the community’s backlash is where the toxicity lays. As we follow Emi walking around doing her chores, you notice how people are treating each other, and the comments were thrown out there are outlandish. The toxicity of the world can be felt in the early moments of the film, yet humanity’s stupidity can also be hilarious.

Jude is making a mockery of the alt-right thinkers and the keyboard warriors of the world within his preposterous dialogue. There are moments of true ridiculousness that feel so candid and real. These moments unfurl beautifully with Jude’s gorilla style filmmaking. The second chapter is where Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn starts to stipulate its message. We are not in the narrative anymore, but Jude uses words, history, art and politics to demonstrate how society thinks and acts. From discussing Romanian unrest, fellatio, literature, death and hypocrisy, he canvases many ideologies that the people who surrounded Emi have in a satirical manner.

Jude’s film is asking us how far did society go during the pandemic? At what cost do our civil liberties have to be degraded by others? Why must we repeat the past with right-wing politics? This film is for discussion with others, and in the time of Covid-19, this is perhaps one of the most authentic to show the true mindset of some people. As we enter the last chapter, Emi is on trial at a kangaroo court from her pupils’ parents. These parents are repeating all of the ideas Jude has thrown at his audience. We can be sheep at times and imitating others who we believe to be righteous. While not all the characters radically think this way, the emphasis is there.

Dynamically helmed by Katia Pascariu, her authentic and quite frankly honest portrayal of a woman under such scrutiny was compellingly comedic. Sex is a normal part of life, and revenge porn can be a traumatising experience for anyone. Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn is a testing film that leaves you with a lot of food for thought. A worthy winner of the Golden Bear at Berlinale 2021.