Our favourites Vol. 2.

Another 10 films, which may be selected and may get into the feature film section of the 39th Film Festival.

1.) Erik Novák: Nosedive (released on 13th September 2007. ) FIRST FILM

This autumn season started with Erik Novák’s first feature. Novák’s name became widely known as the conceiver and producer of The District! This time he attempted to show the night life of Budapest. Though our critic liked the movie, the audience had a different opinion: the filmmakers expected 300.000 viewers, but the film didn’t do well, only 4500 people saw it in the week of its release.

IMDb
Official site


Dorka Gryllus and Zsolt Nagy


2.) Ferenc Török: Overnight (released on 4th October 2007.)

Ferenc Török’s Overnight didn’t do well in the box offices either. We expected a lot from the third feature film of the director, but in the week of the release only 2500 people were interested. The film is set in Budapest-Berlin-Bombay. “The world of the mafia and that of the stock exchange seem to be very different, but they are very closed microworlds, about which we do not know anything but the cliches. The topics and characters of both films are based on subcultures. This is a risky undertaking: they will either be cult films or complete failures.” – said our critic.

IMDb
Official site


Ervin Nagy


3.) György Szomjas: The Sun Street Boys (released on 18th October 2007.)

György Szomjas commemorated the 50th anniversary of 23rd October 1956 a year later, in 2007 with a feature film. “The heroes of The Sun Street Boys are very similar to those of Ferenc Molnár – they try to defend an area very important for them from the enemy. This pure and primary form of heroism may seem more realistic than any other real or fictional hero of 1956 portrayed in the past year.” – says our critic.

IMDb


Streetfight


4.) Róbert Koltai: Train Keeps a Rollin’(released on 18th October 2007.)

Róbert Koltai’s latest film started with a mediahack. MTI gave credit and announced the news and when they turned out to be fake, MTI denounced the creators but nothing happened, they didn’t even receive an official reprimand. Another scandal broke out at the same time: the heirs of Sándor Mihályfi are planning to sue Koltai, as the film resembles pretty much Indul a bakterház. Despite all the scandals, our film critic’s hair stood on end but the audience likes the movie very much: according to the official website of the film, 170 000 viewers have seen the folk comedy about the mummufied relics of the Barczika ancient mother so far.

IMDb
Official site


Róbert Koltai and Csaba Pindroch


5.) Anna Faur: Girls (released on 8th November 2007.) FIRST FILM

Anna Faur’s graduation film was made in the production of Hunnia Film Studio. The filmmakers were inspired by the real events of the taxi driver murders, but the screenplay is completely fictitious. HungaroTop thought for certain reasons that the life of generations living on the margins of society may arouse the audience’s interest, so they released the film with 12 copies, but only 637 people saw the story of the taxi driver killer girls in the first week of the release.

IMDb
Official site


Fulvia Collongues and Héléne Francois


6.) Szabolcs Hajdu: Off Hollywood(April, Adel versus Friday, Attack) (released on 29th November 2007.)

Unlike White Palm, Off Hollywood is a low-budget feature film: it arrived with four copies at the Hungarian cinemas. Szabolcs Hajdu’s fourth feature, which was originally meant for TV broadcasting, presents the artist before the day of her film premiere with all the pain of self-revelation. Sometimes it is embarrassing how honestly it talks about the conflicts between the artist’s Profession and private life. The film makes fun of everything yet it is very credible. Despite all this, only 354 people were interested in the week of the release.

IMDb
Official site


Orsolya Török-Illyés


7.) Dániel Magyar - Ádám Magyar: Egon & Dönci(released on 29th November 2007.) FIRST FILM

We heard about Egon & Dönci for the first time when it debuted in Cannes. The animation movie, which was being made for ten years, has been distributed in many countries since then. Egon, the lonely astronaut is exploring the secrets of the universe, together with his awkward cat-like partner, Dönci. There are no conversations in the movie. According to the first reviews: “The form and the apperance of the characters, the nonviolent story and the filmmakers’ intention to make a better world all contribute to the success of the movie among both the young and the old.” Children seem to really like it, as in the week of the release, 4750 tickets were sold, which counts a box office hit during this season.

IMDb
Official site

8.) Béla Ternovszky: Cat City 2 (release date: 20th December 2007.)

More than twenty years have passed since the highly successful first part of the animated movie, in real life, and in the story of Cat City too. Our heroes have had their time: Bob Poliakoff is in a rest-home, Lazy Dick has gone to live with his “brothers and sisters”. Giovanni Gatto, Fritz Teufel and his humble-hearted secretary, Safranek also grew old. The former barsinger rat gangsters have become respected members of the mouse society. Nick Grabowsky’s marriage with the Japanese assistant mouse ended, and now the paunchy, unshaven, balding and lonely mouse is running his profitable spinach business alone. Cat City 2 tries to captivate the Hungarian audience with 46 copies.

IMDb
Official site



Fritz Teufel and Mr Gatto


9.) Péter Tímár: CASTING(release date: 10th January 2008.)

With his twelfth feature film director Péter Tímár returns to his favourite topic, music. As a matter of curiosity, the film was to be directed by András Kern, who also plays the leading role. The director of Moziklip and Dollybirds was inspired by the TV show called Megastar this time, though the film is not about Ibolya Oláh or the talent contest of channel TV2. According to the synopsis “A national commercial TV channel launches a talent competition. One of the contestants, Kati Ormos (played by Ibolya Oláh) is the central character of the film. The talented girl grew up in a youth custody center. When she gets into the finale stage of the contest, she supposes she needs a singing teacher who would prepare her. She finds Rezső (portayed by András Kern), a formerly famous singer-composer. The grumpy teacher, however, wouldn’t hear of supporting the girl.”

IMDb
Official site


Competitors


10.) Béla Paczolay: Adventurers (release date: 24th January 2008.) FIRST FILM

Béla Paczolay, who used to direct advertisments and TV films, debuted as a feature film director with his film, Mine Lake at the 38th Film Festival. The filming of Adventurers was delayed many times, but the roadmovie, which follows the life of three generations, was finished in the end. According to the story of the film, the main character, a trumpet player’s life falls to pieces. Due to his fourth divorce, he loses all his fortune, when his father calls him and asks for his help: he would like to move to his son to Budapest because of a woman, namely of his wife. The third and youngest generation is represented by the boy, who works in the underworld. The three of them are the adventurers, who cross Transylvania packed in a car.

IMDb



Péter Haumann and Milan Schruff

To be continued.