1945 (2017)

12 August 1945, 11 AM. Two mysterious strangers dressed in black appear at the railway station of a Hungarian village. Within a few hours, everything changes.

Director:

Ferenc Török

Writers:

Gábor T. Szántó, Ferenc Török

Stars:

Péter Rudolf, Bence Tasnádi, Tamás Szabó Kimmel

6 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Péter Rudolf	...	Szentes István, a jegyzö / Town Clerk
Bence Tasnádi	...	Szentes Árpád
Tamás Szabó Kimmel	...	Jancsi
Dóra Sztarenki	...	Kisrózsi
Ági Szirtes	...	Kustár Andrásné / Mrs. Kustár
József Szarvas	...	Kustár András
Eszter Nagy-Kálózy	...	Szentesné Anna / Mrs. Szentes
Iván Angelusz	...	Sámuel Hermann
Marcell Nagy	...	Sámuel Hermann fia / Son of Sámuel Hermann
István Znamenák	...	Állomásfönök / Station Master
Sándor Terhes	...	Iharos Pál
Miklós Székely B.	...	Suba Mihály (as Miklós B. Székely)
György Somhegyi	...	Ifj. Suba Mihály / Son of Suba Mihály
Tünde Szalontay	...	Rózsika
Béla Gados	...	Pap / Priest

Storyline

12 August 1945, 11 AM. Two mysterious strangers, dressed in black, Jews, appear at the railway station of a Hungarian village. In the shadow of Russian occupation, the people of the village are preparing for the wedding of the son of the town clerk. The bride's former fiance returns from captivity. Within a few hours, everything changes. Secrets, sins, reckoning, love, betrayal, confrontation.

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Plot Keywords:

stranger in town | guilt | holocaust | post world war two | year as title | 

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Taglines:

Some Secrets Can't Be Buried

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Hungary

Language:

Hungarian Russian

Release Date:

1 November 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

1945

Filming Locations:

Hungary

Box Office

Budget:

EUR1,467,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$20,365, 5 November 2017

Gross USA:

$1,006,193

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,240,663

Company Credits

Production Co:

Katapult Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Color:

Black and White

Did You Know?

Trivia

For the role, Péter Rudolf gained 33 pounds (15 kg)

User Reviews

Startlingly Good

Previous reviews have failed to take account of this film's "Sitz im Leben"-- the current situation in Hungary, where the Fidesz government under Orbán Viktor has played footsie with the broad swath of irredentist voters who continue to harbor anti-Semitic leanings. Hungary has not yet come to terms with its role in the murder of its Jewish citizens. For example, the recently erected monument to Victims of Nazi Aggression portrays Hungary as a Victim State, not as a willing cooperator in the execution of roughly 5% of the national population. But it was Hungarian officials that carried out the orders, not Germans. Hungarian officialdom and non-officialdom was more than willing to participate in the Holocaust, but they are loath to acknowledge any corporate responsibility.

A personal but illustrative anecdote. About seven years ago I was teaching at a gimnázium in a town not far from Budaptest and went to see the movie "Avatar" at a local theater over a weekend. The next Monday, as part of English conversation class, I told my students what I had done, that I had gone to thus and such theater to see the movie. The immediate response to my statement came from a student whom I had come to know as a pretty bright kid who was eager to learn. He said, "Oh yes, Jews own that theater."

Where the f*** did that come from? Over the past few years I have realized that it comes from the same deep-rooted inability of Hungarians to understand that their loss of territory after WWI and their continuing economic problems come not from their "enemies" (Jews above all, but Gypsies too) but from themselves and the same culture of self-deception and corruption that is depicted in this film.

Which film, by the way, is elegantly framed and carefully composed, is presented with almost stately precision, and which I highly, highly recommend.