"Collective" is Jaw-Dropping Hard-Hitting Investigative Journalism at its Finest
Collective is released online today! You can watch it now using the link at the bottom of the article.
Collective (2020) by Alexander Nanau: 9/10
This gripping exposé from director Alexander Nanau follows a real-time investigation into the corruption and greed at the heart of the Romanian healthcare system and its devastating consequences for the Romanian people.
On 30th October 2015, fire tore through the Colectiv Club in Bucharest killing 27 youngsters almost instantly. 180 people were injured, 37 of whom died in the following months almost exclusively from bacterial infections. Collective includes the story of one family who lost their son. He had non-life-threatening injuries, yet he died in agony in a Bucharest hospital 9 days later. How could this happen? A small team of journalists at the Gazeta Sporturilor, led by Catalin Tolontan, launched an investigation which uncovered a system rotten from top to bottom.
Director Alexander Nanau’s observational style of filmmaking does not miss a beat as it takes you on a journey which will make you furious and appalled in equal measure. Collective does not include any interviews. Instead it consists solely of footage filmed over a 14-month period, expertly edited to give a sense of transparency that is so lacking in the system it critiques.
The first revelation is that the disinfectants used in 2,000 operating theatres across Romania had a chemical concentration 10 times less than it said on the bottle. As an insider at the supplier put it; the disinfectants did not kill bacteria, they killed people, over 12,000 patients each year in fact. But this was just the tip of the iceberg. Through a combination of stake-outs, whistle-blowers and dogged determination, Tolontan and his team uncover bribery, fraud and criminal activity with hospital managers and politicians siphoning off tens of millions of euros in public funds and hints of mob involvement. One target of the investigation suffers a violent car accident and dies. Was it suicide or murder?
The appointment of a new Health Minister, with a background in activism and clear commitment to rooting out corruption, offers some hope. Nanau is given unprecedented access to private meetings as the Minister attempts to expose and reform the system, directly confronting individuals and taking no prisoners. But the real kicker comes at the end of the film when, despite the Minister and the press’ exposure of their lies, corruption and criminality, the Social Democratic Government is re-elected. Leaving the Romanian people, once again, at the mercy of a profoundly corrupt state.
As the scale of corruption and deceit unfolds, the documentary is interspersed with scenes of one of the Colectiv survivors, Tedy Ursuleanu, as she moves forward with her life. Using art to heal the trauma, Nanau ensures her voice is heard.
This is hard-hitting investigative journalism at its finest.
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