Some period films come across as homages to classics of the past, while others play perilously on the edge of imitation. “Budapest Noir” definitely falls in the latter category, channeling any number of noir films, including “Chinatown,” with the usual stock figures: hard-boiled investigative reporter, femme fatale, corrupt officials, sleazy underbelly, and an urban landscape used as if it’s one of the main characters. It’s a tried-and-true formula, but to make it work there needs to be more than an ounce of originality, which editor-turned-director Éva Gárdos (“An American Rhapsody”) has a hard time locating in either András Szekér’s script or her own direction. Instead, the movie feels like the pilot for a period detective series, which might not be far from the truth since Vilmos Kondor’s novel launched fictional newshound Zsigmond Gordon as a recurring character.
As a fairly anodyne mystery, the film can be...
As a fairly anodyne mystery, the film can be...
- 6/21/2018
- by Jay Weissberg
- Variety Film + TV
The Notebook
Written by János Szász and András Szekér
Directed by János Szász
Hungary, 2013
We’ve seen countless films depicting the monstrosity of World War II, but The Notebook gives us an unflinching look at the monsters it created. Both observant and nonjudgmental, director, János Szász, drops us into a war zone bereft of borders or buffers. Allegiances crumble and shift like the tattered landscape, where even familial ties yield to stark necessity. This is a challenging film that reaffirms the survival of the human spirit, not through acts of courage or bravery, but by harnessing our spitefulness and hatred to outlast the enemy. Whether the soul can endure such a coldhearted transformation is left for the audience to decide.
For most filmgoers, it’s impossible to comprehend the daily horror of living in a residential war zone and the toll it takes on the human spirit. Based on the French novel by Agota Kristof,...
Written by János Szász and András Szekér
Directed by János Szász
Hungary, 2013
We’ve seen countless films depicting the monstrosity of World War II, but The Notebook gives us an unflinching look at the monsters it created. Both observant and nonjudgmental, director, János Szász, drops us into a war zone bereft of borders or buffers. Allegiances crumble and shift like the tattered landscape, where even familial ties yield to stark necessity. This is a challenging film that reaffirms the survival of the human spirit, not through acts of courage or bravery, but by harnessing our spitefulness and hatred to outlast the enemy. Whether the soul can endure such a coldhearted transformation is left for the audience to decide.
For most filmgoers, it’s impossible to comprehend the daily horror of living in a residential war zone and the toll it takes on the human spirit. Based on the French novel by Agota Kristof,...
- 9/5/2014
- by J.R. Kinnard
- SoundOnSight
The Notebook (Le grand cahier) (A nagy füzet) Sony Pictures Classics Reviewed for Shockya by Harvey Karten. Data-based on Rotten Tomatoes Grade: A- Director: János Szász Screenplay: Agota Kristof, András Szekér, Tom Abrams – adapted from Agota Kristof’s novel (see below) Cast: András Gyémánt, Gyöngyvér Bognár, László Gyémánt, Piroska Molnár, András Réthelyi, Ulrich Matthes Screened at: Sony, NYC, 8/13/14 Opens: August 29, 2014 In his 1954 dystopian novel “Lord of the Flies,” William Golding creates a world of British boys as sole inhabitants of an island without adult authorities. They try to govern themselves but end up with disaster. Simply put, the youngsters become barbarians. In “The Notebook,” we discover [ Read More ]
The post The Notebook Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post The Notebook Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 8/17/2014
- by Harvey Karten
- ShockYa
The Notebook
Written by Tom Abrams, András Szekér and János Szász
Directed by János Szász
Hungary/Germany/Austria/France, 2013
Set in a small border village over the course of World War II, Hungarian curio The Notebook is unlike any war film you’ve ever seen. Its central characters are twin boys, named only in the credits as One (András Gyémánt) and Other (László Gyémánt), who think and act as a single person. At the beginning of the film, their parents take them away from their luxurious city apartment, fearing that identical twins would be too conspicuous in wartime. They are sent to live with their mean-spirited Grandmother (Piroska Molnár), despite the fact that she has unequivocally fallen out with their mother and is suspected of murdering her husband. The only instructions given to them are to keep up with their studies and record everything that happens in a notebook. It...
Written by Tom Abrams, András Szekér and János Szász
Directed by János Szász
Hungary/Germany/Austria/France, 2013
Set in a small border village over the course of World War II, Hungarian curio The Notebook is unlike any war film you’ve ever seen. Its central characters are twin boys, named only in the credits as One (András Gyémánt) and Other (László Gyémánt), who think and act as a single person. At the beginning of the film, their parents take them away from their luxurious city apartment, fearing that identical twins would be too conspicuous in wartime. They are sent to live with their mean-spirited Grandmother (Piroska Molnár), despite the fact that she has unequivocally fallen out with their mother and is suspected of murdering her husband. The only instructions given to them are to keep up with their studies and record everything that happens in a notebook. It...
- 3/12/2014
- by Rob Dickie
- SoundOnSight
Hungarian Oscar selection committee chooses János Szász’s period drama.
Hungary has selected The Notebook (Le Grand Cahier) as its Best Foreign Language Film Oscar entry.
János Szász’s period drama, which picked up the Crystal Globe at Karlovy Vary, follows two young brothers struggling to survive on the Hungarian border during World War II.
Review: The NotebookINTERVIEW: Janos Szász and Sándor Pál
Based on Agota Kritóf‘s bestselling novel of the same name, the screenplay is written by Szász and András Szekér. Producers are Hunnia Film Studio and Intuit Pictures in coproduction with Amour Fou and Dolce Vita Films.
Beta handles sales.
Hungary has selected The Notebook (Le Grand Cahier) as its Best Foreign Language Film Oscar entry.
János Szász’s period drama, which picked up the Crystal Globe at Karlovy Vary, follows two young brothers struggling to survive on the Hungarian border during World War II.
Review: The NotebookINTERVIEW: Janos Szász and Sándor Pál
Based on Agota Kritóf‘s bestselling novel of the same name, the screenplay is written by Szász and András Szekér. Producers are Hunnia Film Studio and Intuit Pictures in coproduction with Amour Fou and Dolce Vita Films.
Beta handles sales.
- 8/7/2013
- by andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
- ScreenDaily
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