The Hungarian Dressmaker

The Hungarian Dressmaker 2024

1

It’s the 1940s. The Slovak state witnesses the rise of nationalism and it’s not an auspicious time for minorities. The turbulent social mood also impacts the widow Marika, who loses her job in an Aryanised dressmaker’s shop. Given the increasing anti-Hungarian sentiment she shuts herself away, particularly since she is harbouring a little Jewish boy. Despite this she still finds herself singled out by two men: a German Nazi officer and a captain of Slovakia’s Hlinka Guard. This drama by Slovak director Iveta Grófová is an adaptation of the novella of the same name by Peter Krištúfek, which conjures up the dramatic atmosphere of wartime Slovakia. The story of a fragmented era, which forces the protagonists to confront complex dilemmas, is told not only through words, but also by way of a powerful visual language. Sandra Hezinová (kviff.com)

2024

Natural Light

Natural Light 2021

5.80

World War II, occupied Soviet Union. István Semetka is a simple Hungarian farmer who serves as a Sub-Lieutenant in a special unit scouting for partisan groups. On their way to a remote village, his company falls under enemy fire. As the commander is killed, Semetka has to overcome his fears and take command of the unit as he is dragged into a chaos that he cannot control.

2021

Cain's Children

Cain's Children 2014

9.00

Three boys, they all committed murder. After discovering their haunting faces and disturbing stories in a banned prison documentary from 1984, the filmmaker goes out to find them and discovers untold secrets and a Hungary he has never known.

2014

Bullhorn Lullaby

Bullhorn Lullaby 2020

6.50

A hardcore soccer ultra, Gyula, and his wife, Mariann, long for a baby. But it turns out that Gyula is sterile and when their plans to adopt also go up in smoke, Mariann does a deal behind her husband's back: they will take in the soon to be born child of a young Roma woman. The ensuing state of affairs turns all of their lives upside down. While Gyula has to continually hide the truth from his racist friends, surprises await him in his private life, and when Cupid's arrow strikes him from the most unexpected direction, he is faced with both comical situations and acute moral dilemmas.

2020

Return to Epipo

Return to Epipo 2020

7.00

25 years after spending their holidays at a summer camp in 1980s socialist Hungary, the campers confont the demons of the past.

2020

Her Mothers

Her Mothers 2020

1

As Hungary’s political climate becomes increasingly radicalized, Virág, a former green politician, loses faith in the democratic parliament of Hungary and retires from politics. She and her musician partner Nóra decide to adopt a child and focus on building a family together. With a sensitive lens and close access, directors Asia Dér and Sári Haragonics follow the two women through their long and ultimately successful adoption process to bring home their young daughter of Roma origins. But tensions begin to rise between the two as Virág thrives in her role as mother and Nóra struggles to find her place within the family. As the rising tides of hate and homophobia in Hungary begin to overflow into their family, their lives hit a boiling point and they must face the difficult decision of whether to leave their country behind.

2020