Hungarian Conservative

More than a hundred Hungarian films will be available on nineteen television channels, rarely seen Hungarian films will be screened in cinemas, and almost all streaming platforms available in Hungary will join the celebration of Hungarian film starting on 29 April, the National Film Institute announced.

Conservative investor Nelson Peltz was trying to get new members elected to the board of directors at the 3 April shareholders meeting and thus steer the company away from their woke agenda, to no avail. The same woke board members retained their positions, to which the market, expecting a change, did not react well.

According to the statement by the National Media and Infocommunications Authority, prompted by a citizen’s report, the Media Council examined the second episode of the first season of the series Locke & Key, available on the streaming service of Netflix, in terms of compliance with classification regulations. Following the investigation, Netflix changed the age rating of the programme to 16+ in its Hungarian media service.

In a time when Hollywood seems to be very concerned with not offending anyone, horror films depicting Catholic imagery along with blood and gore are still common—Immaculate starring Sydney Sweeney, for example, is being released in theatres this week.

There are about fifty places in Hungary and in Hungarian-inhabited areas beyond the borders where Hollywood filmmakers or actors were born or have ancestral roots. The wall of Hollywood celebrities of Hungarian origin inaugurated in Budapest on 21 March pays tribute to them.

The film is a valuable contribution to keeping the spirit and memory of the 1848 revolution and freedom fight alive by transforming distant historical figures into flesh and blood people in a credible and compelling way. It deserves merit also because, in a brave move, it attributes a prominent role in the events to Júlia Szendrey, Petőfi’s wife, paying tribute to this tragic-fated woman who became a renowned poet, writer and translator in her later life.

The production supported by the National Film Institute also include a series titled The Nation’s Golden Boys is in the making, focusing on the Hungarian men’s water polo team that won three consecutive Olympic gold medals between 2000 and 2008, and a documentary film that depicts the life of Ferenc Xavér Éder, a Jesuit missionary who was one of the first Hungarian travellers to set foot in Peru and who served as a missionary among the Moxos Indians for twenty years in the 18th century.

Throughout the years, Hungary has produced a cornucopia of iconic, memorable cartoons, for both film and television, such as Marcell Jankovics’s TV series Magyar Népmesék (Hungarian Folk Tales, 1980–2012), or Béla Ternovszky’s animated feature comedy Macskafogó (Cat City, 1986).

The two will be starring in Nuremberg, a historical drama directed by James Vanderbilt about American psychiatrist Douglas M. Kelley’s series of interviews with incarcerated Nazi leader Hermann Göring ahead of the Nuremberg trials.

The fifteen-minute documentary focuses on the early challenges of Hungarian cinema history, including the flammability of nitro celluloid film reels, which resulted in numerous tragic fires during the silent film era.

Despite the surge in online streaming services, the study emphasizes, it is premature to underestimate the significance of films screened in theatres. In 2023, film distributors in Hungary reported a successful year with ticket revenues reaching nearly 22 billion forints and a total audience exceeding ten million. In Hungary, the study reveals that on an average Saturday evening between 8 and 10pm, over four million people tune in to television, with nearly three million supporting various musical talent shows.

In an effort to appease the masses and break the streak of box office failures, Disney decided to add CGI dwarfs in their upcoming Snow White film after originally replacing them with a diverse group of ‘magical creatures’.

The NFI’s decision-making committee voted to support the production of six different television works.

The 76-year-old former Oscar nominee lauded the Eastern European countries for protecting their borders and actually enforcing their immigration laws, unlike his country of the US.

At a press conference in Budapest, producer Tamás Lajos disclosed that there are ongoing negotiations with international streaming services, expressing optimism regarding the film’s success abroad.

There will be over a hundred screenings held under the event’s umbrella at 29 locations across the country. On this day, the eight art cinemas in Budapest and the 21 art cinemas in the countryside will offer a unique selection of films, giving the audience the opportunity to see them weeks or even months before their national premieres.

The event, spanning two weekends, will be hosted by the cinemas operated by the municipality located in the two major city neighbourhoods. On 11–12 November, children can watch Hungarian cartoons at the Dacia Cinema, while on 18–19 November, it will be the Marasti Cinema’s turn.

Jankovics, best known for creating the classic animated TV series Hungarian Folk Tales (Magyar Népmesék, 1980–2012), was born 81 years ago today. This piece celebrates the long and illustrious career of the great Hungarian cartoonist and film director.

Lajos Koltai’s film, produced by the Szupermodern Film Studio with the support of the Hungarian National Film Institute (NFI), portrays the life and work of Ignác Semmelweis, the world-famous Hungarian obstetrician who challenged traditional theories and sought to combat one of the most devastating diseases of the 19th century, puerperal fever.

‘Everything changed in his life when the immaculately dressed Lugosi stepped into the film spotlight. His forbidding way of welcoming people, the aristocratic touches, his charms and menacing looks all clearly define what everyone sees as Dracula—Béla Lugosi’s Dracula—then as well as now. This was his achievement and accolade alone, as no future vampires came anywhere close.’

The opening film of the festival is Kim Hee-jung’s 2023 work titled Where Would You Like to Go? which, like the director’s previous films, deals with a profound life event and, more specifically, the altered perception of reality resulting from it.

The international celebrity last visited Hungary in 2010 when she directed her first film, In the Land of Blood and Honey. After 13 years, she is returning to Budapest to shoot a film about the world-renowned opera singer Maria Callas.

Despite the Hungarian fervour and the crime plot introduced and dropped in the story, the film was no success. Hungarian viewers could not relate to the characters in a film portraying an overseas world.

Gábor Reisz’s third feature film, Explanation for Everything, is also part of the official programme, in the Orizzonti section. Additionally, Dorka Vermes’ debut feature, Arni, will be presented in the College Cinema section.

In the new, 2024 Disney adaptation of the classic fairy tale, Snow White will be played by Latina actress Rachel Zegler despite her name and the former popular depictions of the princess. The dwarfs are also removed due to ‘ableism’. The Disney Corporation has been putting out some ‘woke’ films lately, and it seems it’s not going well for them in the box office.

Hungarian cinemagoers have been craving enjoyable historical films for a long time. Finally, Hadik arrived, which, although not faultless, is a great example of the genre well done.

Kristóf Deák’s 2022 crime drama was awarded in the Audience Choice Award for Best Feature category at the Stony Brook Film Festival. The director has won an Academy Award as well in the past for one of his previous works.

Gábor Reisz, known for his previous films For Some Inexplicable Reason and Bad Poems, will present his third feature film in the official selection of the A-category festival. The film’s director, cast, producer, and crew members will accompany the film to Venice.

Gergely Gulyás spoke about how if we value our past, then film is one of the most important means of presenting it. He continued by saying that it’s a different question how far back in time one can go.

Foky was a pioneer in stop-motion animation. His best-known works are the award-winning short Babfilm (Pea Film, 1975), Mirr-Murr kandúr kalandjai (The Adventures of Mirr-Murr the Tomcat, 1972–1972), and, of course, the TV Bear.