Oglinda

Oglinda ("The Mirror"), also known as Începutul adevărului ("The Beginning of Truth"), is a controversial 1993 film by Romanian director Sergiu Nicolaescu. It depicts Romania during World War II, focusing on the Royal Coup of 23 August 1944 that toppled Ion Antonescu, the Axis-allied Conducător and authoritarian Prime Minister. Cast as Ion Antonescu as Michael I of Romania Gheorghe Dinică as Mihai Antonescu as Iuliu Maniu George Constantin as Andrey Vyshinsky Sergiu Nicolaescu as Johannes Frießner as Adolf Hitler Peter Wolf Joachim as Joachim von Ribbentrop Șerban Ionescu as Lucrețiu Pătrășcanu George Alexandru as as Mircea Ionnițiu Ștefan Iordache as Eugen Cristescu Dorel Vișan as Petru Groza Mitică Popescu as Dumitru Săracu Emil Hossu as Colonel Ion Lupu as General Constantin Sănătescu Vladimir Găitan as Dinu Brătianu as Iurie Darie as Iorgu Ghica as SS-Standartenführer as Gheorghe Brătianu as Marshal Fyodor Tolbukhin as Maria Antonescu Olga Bucătaru as Queen Mother Helen as Baron Manfred von Killinger Liviu Crăciun as General Aurel Aldea Traian Stănescu as Constantin Titel Petrescu Petru Moraru as Teohari Georgescu as Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej as Corneliu Coposu Paul Ioachim as Gheorghe Pintilie Constantin Drăgănescu as Intelligence Service agent Virgil Popovici — General Reactions The film was criticized as being apologetic of Antonescu, whom it portrays as a martyr figure, without mention being made of his complicity in the Holocaust (see Holocaust in Romania). Oglinda is also sympathetic to Antonescu's Nazi German ally Adolf Hitler, who is depicted as a calm and wise politician. Nicolaescu himself claims that journalist Octavian Paler labeled it a "fascist film". The film was also criticized for several other errors. Historian and former public servant Neagu Djuvara, who in 1944 represented Antonescu's government to Stockholm, where he contacted the Soviet Union representative Alexandra Kollontai and unsuccessfully negotiated an armistice, rejected the film's allusive take on these events, which claimed that Romania's special requests had been ignored by their counterparts, and called it "a lie". According to Sergiu Nicolaescu, former King of Romania Michael I, the main decision factor behind Antonescu's deposition, objected to his character being depicted as a heavy smoker.