Questions & Answers about Mi-a plăcut filmul.
Why does this use mi- instead of eu for "I"?
In Romanian, the verb a plăcea (to like) works like "to be pleasing to". You don't say "I like the movie", but rather "The movie is pleasing to me." So, you use the indirect object pronoun mi- (to me) instead of the subject pronoun eu (I).
Why is the verb a plăcut (it pleased) instead of a first-person "I" form?
What exactly does mi-a stand for?
Mi-a is a shortened combination of îmi (to me) and a (the past tense helper verb for "he/she/it"). When spoken together, the î is dropped and the words connect with a hyphen to make pronunciation faster and smoother.
Could I put filmul at the beginning, like Filmul mi-a plăcut?
Yes, you can! Filmul mi-a plăcut is completely correct and means the same thing. Putting mi-a plăcut first, as in this sentence, is just the most natural and common word order in conversational Romanian.