In a time when there are fewer and fewer occasions for seeing anything but American films from Hollywood, programs such as this Hungarian contemporary film cycle offer a chance for Croatian film lovers to learn what is going on in other countries.



Although Hungarian cinema is not as interesting as it was during the 1960s and part of the 1970s, nevertheless Hungary has a respectable level of film production, totaling more than twenty films a year, most of which are outstanding.

The films in this program have been shown at many international film festivals. The absolute record breaker is the debut film by Nimród Antal, Control. This film has been shown at almost sixty festivals, winning many awards and much recognition, such as a nomination from the European Film Academy for Best Director, (previously this award was called Felix). The protagonists of the film are ticket controllers who work in the subway, and the whole story happens underground. The completeness and detachment of this microcosm indicate the collective fear from events above the ground as well as social changes in the external world. While it may seem that this topic would only be interesting to a select audience, its interpretation through the fantastic thriller genre, along with its suggestiveness and rhythm, helped sell an unbelievable 200.000 tickets in Hungary. These days, Hungarian directors care about ratings much more than they did in the previous social system. This is evident in such hits as A Kind of America (Valami Amerika) by Gábor Herendi or Vilagszám / Dodó és Naftalin Róbert Koltai. However, these films have much greater ambitions than to simply flatter the audience. Director Koltai tells a story about two completely different twins who work as clowns. The twins were born in 1903 and they observe different events from Hungarian history. The film resembles bitter Czech comedies and creates an interesting blend of nostalgia, humor, irony and drama. The part that depicts the uprising from 1956 represents the peak of comic as well as emotional and tragic moments of this film.

The choice of films in this program is diverse and there are films such as the winner of the national festival in 2003, Magyar szépszég Péter Gothár, one of the most famous Hungarian authors who in early 1980s won awards in Venice and Cannes. Programs such as this one will, undoubtedly, help overcome geographically small but, in terms of film, very big distances between us and our northern neighbors.
(Tomislav Kurelec)