Feature Films
Wednesday – 1 November – 17:00 – 19:00
+15
Cast: Nikolai Becker, Soliman Cruz, Bartholome Guingona, Olivier Ho Hio Hen, Alexandre Nguyen, Emmanuel Sto. Domingo, Dimitar Vasilev, Olivier Chen
Based on a true story. 1996, somewhere in the open sea. During his shift on a transatlantic ship’s deck, Joel, a religious Filipino sailor, discovers Dumitru, a Romanian stowaway hidden between some containers. If he is spotted by the Taiwanese officers running the vessel, Dumitru is at risk of being thrown overboard. Joel decides to hide him as a sign of his gratitude towards God. Soon, a dangerous cat-and-mouse game begins. When his crew, his own friends and even God himself start to turn their backs on him, Joel learns that he has to face his cruel destiny alone.
Wednesday – 1 November – 19:15 – 20:10
16+
Cast: János Áfra, Attila Vidnyánszky jr. (voice), Éva Bata (voice)
Heinrich Böll, a corporal in the Wehrmacht was convalescing in Sfântu Gheorghe, Debrecen and Szentes in the summer of 1944 after being seriously wounded in the battle of Iași. Every day he wrote to his wife Annemarie, and these intimate, honest confessions have survived. The period covered in the film also saw the invasion of Normandy take place, Jews being taken from Hungary and von Stauffenberg trying to kill Hitler. Böll reports on all these events. The film explores what this period added to the humanist and pacifist worldview of the future Nobel Prize-winning writer. A bottom-up view of history.
Wednesday – 1 November – 20:45 – 22:25
16+
Cast: Emőke Pál, Zsolt Trill, Lajos Ottó Horváth, Iván Fenyő, Anna Fehér, Ildikó Tóth, Erika Tankó
At the end of May 2013, a country watches anxiously as the first Hungarian to ever climb Mount Everest, Zsolt Erőss, disappears in the Himalayas alongside his climbing partner. Although everyone else still holds out hope, his wife Hilda Sterczer announces in a live broadcast that organizing any more rescue expeditions is pointless. In the weeks that follow, the media try to tear her down systematically.
The film depicts the events from Zsolt Erőss’s wife’s point of view.
Thusday – 2 November – 18:00 – 19:45
12+
Cast: Máté Mészáros, Lia Pokorny, Abigél Szőke, Ákos Orosz, András Ötvös
Hungary, the mid-80s. Gyuri Maurer, a savvy car mechanic has a solution to everything: all the party bigwigs bring their cars to him. In a few days, he is about to take a vacation at the French Riviera with his family, but instead of four passports, they only get three. Suddenly, Gyuri has an epiphany: they borrow the luxury car left in the garage by an immigrated Hungarian. With a West German car and passport, the family begins to act like tourists who came to enjoy the luxury service at Lake Balaton. Little do they know that the borrowed car will land them in the middle of a Cold War spy game…
Friday – 3 November – 16:00 – 17:20 – SMALL HALL
12+
Conquering Time is an intimate portrait of Ágnes Keleti, the oldest living Olympic Champion. An all-time star of gymnastics who made sport history in the 20th century winning 10 Olympic medals. The film follows her over a period of one year until her 101st birthday. Ágnes’s full life is inseparable from the historical events she has lived through. War, hiding, loss of family members, emigration, and statelessness. Despite the indescribable physical and mental suffering the weight of history had visited on her, nothing could tear her away from gymnastics.
Friday – 3 November – 18:00 – 19:50
15+
Cast: Szabolcs Thuróczy, Benett Vilmányi, Anna Szandtner, Levente Orbán
Adam lives in the poorest part of Eastern Hungary in isolation from society and works as a shepherd on a farm. He lives with his formerly violent, but now reformed father in an oppressive relationship. However, as the only way by which he can express his feelings and overcome his speech impediment, hip-hop culture and rapping is very important for Adam. One day he unexpectedly achieves tremendous success in a fancy national online talent show under the pseudonym “Larry”, with a song he wrote about his father’s unforgivable sins. Adam makes it to the finals, but he soon realizes that he is unable to rap in front of others; he freezes up and his aphasia begins to emerge again. In order to grow into his online, popular alter ego, Adam must break through his inhibitions and face the strange authority of his father…
Friday – 3 November – 21:30 – 22:50
15+
Cast: Cătălina Moga, Paul Ipate, Alex Velea, Elvira Deatcu, Bogdan Tulbure
Vera, a veterinarian at a zoo in a small town in Transylvania, is consumed by personal problems and has a nervous breakdown. A tiger escapes from the zoo; Vera has to search for it. The film is inspired by real events that happened in Sibiu in 2011.
Saturday – 4 November – 14:00 – 15:50
15+
Cast: Alex Calangiu, Cătălin Herlo, Ionuţ Caras, Iulian Postelnicu, Alexandru Papadopol, Leonid Doni, Andi Vasluianu, Cuzin Toma, Mirela Oprişor
In the chaotic days of the December 1989 revolution that overthrew the Communist regime, the Transylvanian city of Sibiu becomes the scene of a violent assault on a Miliția (Romanian communist police) unit that quickly escalates into a bloody confrontation between soldiers, policemen, civilian protesters and representatives of the secret police. In a desperate attempt to escape the siege, Miliția captain Viorel is captured by the army and thrown into an empty swimming pool along with hundreds of prisoners accused of being terrorists.
Saturday – 4 November – 17:30 – 18:55
15+
Cast: Előd Bálint, András Hatházi, Katalin Sólyom, Lili Erdős
Misi, a shy 18-year-old boy has been in love with her classmate, Janka for years, but he dares not approach her. He is taking an experimental medicine drug for his panic attacks, Zanox, produced by the local pharmaceutical company, which has unexpected side effects. On the eve of his graduation, Misi realizes that if he drinks Hungarian apple moonshine after taking his medicine, he can travel back in time. However, graduation night is overshadowed by a crime: one of the girls celebrating their high school graduation is killed in the woods. In order to win Janka’s favour, Misi uses the magic of pálinka to outwit the attacker and prevent the crime, but he bites off more than he can chew and ends up in seemingly hopeless situations.
Saturday – 4 November – 20:00 – 22:30
15+
Cast: János Gáspár Adonyi-Walsh, István Znamenák, András Rusznák, Rebeka Hatházi, Eliza Sodró, Lilla Kizlinger, Krisztina Urbanovits
It’s summer in Budapest, high school student Abel is struggling to focus on his final exams, whilst coming to the realisation that he is hopelessly in love with his best friend Janka. The studious Janka has her own unrequited love with married history teacher Jakab – who had a previous confrontation with Abel’s conservative father. The tensions of a polarised society come unexpectedly to the surface when Abel’s history graduation exam turns into a national scandal.
Sunday – 5 November – 12:15 – 14:05
12+
Cast: Zsolt Trill, Lili Horváth, Győző Szabó, Áron Molnár, Tamás Szalma, Lili Bordán, Gábor Reviczky, Zsolt László, István Hirtling, Zoltán Mucsi, Jakubowska Julia, Sándor Gáspár, Péter Forgács, János Derzsi, Géza Tordy
Hadik is a thrilling adventure set in 18th-century Europe, where Andras Hadik, a charismatic Hussar General, is tasked by Queen Maria Theresa of Austria with a dangerous mission. Alongside his fearless riders, Hadik sets out to raid the city of Berlin and teach King Frederick a lesson. As they journey towards their goal, Hadik and his men face countless challenges, including treacherous terrain, fierce battles, and unexpected betrayals. But with Hadik’s unwavering courage and leadership, they emerge victorious and capture the city of Berlin. However, their victory is short-lived as Hadik’s arch-nemesis, the ruthless General Von Bock, tracks them down. In a heart-pounding showdown, Hadik must engage in a deadly sword duel with Von Bock, determined to protect his men and secure their victory. With the mission accomplished and Berlin captured, Hadik returns to Vienna, where the Queen rewards him for his bravery and skill in battle. But even as he basks in the glory of his triumph, Hadik knows that his next adventure awaits, and that he must always be ready for whatever challenges may come his way. Filled with action, suspense, and heart-pounding thrills, Hadik is a movie the whole family can enjoy, a timeless tale of bravery and courage that will inspire audiences for generations to come.
Sunday – 5 November – 14:20 – 15:50
15+
Cast: Anghel Damian, Iulian Postelnicu, Crina Semciuc, Vasile Muraru
Ilie is a policeman in a village where corruption is a way of life. Following a series of violent events he witnesses and the tension that builds up, he is forced to make important decisions both at work and in his personal life.
Sunday – 5 November – 17:30 – 19:15
12+
Cast: Attila Vidnyánszky jr., Zoltán Seress, Tibor Gáspár, László Szacsvay, András Sütő, Ildikó Tóth
József Antall, only six months after his induction as Prime Minister of the first democratic government following the 1989 change of the Communist regime, faces the most difficult test of his life. Taxi drivers protest against the drastic rise in petrol prices by the House of the National Assembly. Quickly disillusioned with democracy, they blockade the city of Budapest, and soon after the whole country. The film is not only the chronicle of the four days of the taxi blockade: it shows the battles and bargains behind the scenes, and the private life of a Prime Minister dealing with crisis, fighting for democracy.
