Watching the Chinese chronically absurd Winter Vacation in Romania, makes me reflect on the outcome of the shared imagined reality of Communism, reflected in people’s collective (un)conscience. Its effects feel the same, even worlds apart. Stillness, absence of logic, passivity, dread. Li Hongqi, the director, transcends all these by lifting them to artistic expression, through repetition and concentration of the themes and actions. It still makes a hard experience to watch, in my case.