'The Death of Mr. Lazarescu', said the film's young director, "speaks about a world ... in which a man whose most basic need for help is absurdly ignored by all around him." It had a brief run in US theatres last year, and the Oscars, as they should, have of course forgotten poor Mr. Lazarescu, that most un-Californian of men: but if you live in New York, here's your chance to see it in a theatre. Here's instead the DVD.