The Stanford Hungarian Film Series 2010-11
Pivotal Women Directors of Hungarian Cinema:
Márta Mészáros and Ildikó Enyedi

Introduction and Commentary by Éva Soós Szőke
Lecturer in Hungarian, Stanford Special Language Program

All screening dates are on Fridays, and will take place in the
Language Corner, Building 260 (Pigott Hall), Room 113,
starting at 7:00pm

All films shown with English subtitles
Co-sponsored by the Special Language Program
Free and open to the public

October 15th: Örökbefogadás / Adoption
1975; directed by Márta Mészáros; 89 minutes
"A central film from revered Hungarian auteur Márta Mészáros (the Diary trilogy), Adoption powerfully contrasts the destinies of two modern Hungarian women brought together by the essential need for simple human contact. Photographed in a restrained black and white style and featuring performances of unusual subtlety and honesty, Adoption was awarded Best Picture at the 1975 Berlin Film Festival." (Kino International)

November 19th: Napló gyermekeimnek / Diary for My Children
1982; directed by Márta Mészáros; 106 minutes
"Set in Hungary during the turbulent years between 1943 and 1956...writer/director Marta Meszaros based the events of Diary for My Children on her own wartime experiences (her father was a Communist artist who died under mysterious circumstances during a Stalinist purge). It was the recipient of a Special Jury Prize at Cannes." (New York Times Review)

January 21st: Temetetlen halott / The Unburied Dead
2004; directed by Márta Mészáros;127 minutes
"The last days of Imre Nagy are chronicled from a memoir written by his daughter Erzsebet. Following the suppression of the Hungarian Revolt in 1956, Imre Nagy (1896-1958) was transported to Romania with members of his family... Mészáros approaches the theme as though she is documenting a diary, offering little political commentary or critical analysis of events. The fate of Imre Nagy is interpreted by Polish actor Jan Nowicki, a Mészáros' long-time favourite." (Kinema)

April 15th: Az én XX. századom / My Twentieth Century (rescheduled from Feb. 18th, and replaces Tamás és Juli  / Tamas and Juli)
1990; directed by Ildikó Enyedi; 104 minutes
"Director Ildiko Enyedi evidently intended My Twentieth Century as an allegorical statement concerning the status of women in the modern mechanical age. The experiences of the twins are interspersed with shots of Thomas Edison, whom we see at the beginning of the film perfecting his incandescent light bulb on the very day that the sisters are born. The more technological advances made by Edison, the more confused the twins become in establishing their own roles in an advancing civilization."  (New York Times Review)

May 20th: Simon mágus / Simon the Magician
1999; directed by Ildikó Enyedi; 200 minutes
"The original Simon Magus was a charismatic Gnostic, considered to be the first in religious history, living in Samaria in the first century...Enyedi's film, however, changes everything around. For a start, the action is transposed to contemporary Paris, with the mysterious magus from the east coming from Budapest. More intriguingly, in the film, Simon is resigned and exhibits an almost world-weary modesty. After solving a murder mystery for vast sums of money, he is the one who is challenged to a dual to survive buried underground for three days, which he accepts reluctantly. Simon is actually far more interested in an attractive French girl who has won over his hardened cynical heart." (Kinoeye, Central Europe Review)