Trailer for the documentary Rodicas.
Rodica is the name shared by two old ladies. One, Rodica Gruia, is filmmaker Alice Gruia’s 88-year-old grandmother; the other, Rodica Grill, is two years younger and the latter’s best friend. Both women share Jewish-Romanian roots and the fact that they have long been residents of Sydney, Australia, where they first met. The two Rodicas are like teenagers when they’re together: chatting non-stop, shopping, going out to concerts and trying out new cafés. Not only are they blessed with an ironic disposition, they are also both extremely strong-willed. Calling themselves ‘sisters’, anyone meeting them for the first time might well liken their relationship to that of an old married couple that has learnt to live with each other in spite of their differences. However, not so apparent at first glance are the marks these women clearly bear from very different personal histories on different continents. What does strike the viewer is how very differently they handle the blows that life has dealt them. Nonetheless, each seems to have found an approach that works.