At the end of June, the Curzon Mayfair cinema in London, in collaboration with the Hungarian Cultural Centre, is hosting ‘Check the Gate’, a showcase of new Hungarian films.
Thursday 26 June
6.30pm
Kontroll (d. Nimród Antal, 2003, 105 mins)
Maestro (d. Géza M. Tóth, 2005, 5 mins)
Friday 27 June
4pm
Just Sex and Nothing Else (Csak szex és más semmi, d. Krisztina Goda, 2005, 93 mins)
Butterfly (Pillango, d. István Komár, 2003, 5 mins)
Lover of Pirates (Kalózok szeretoje, d. Zsófia Péterffy, 2002, 9 mins)
6.30pm
Fresh Air (Friss levegő, d. Ágnes Kocsis, 2006, 109 mins)
Before Dawn (d. Bálint Kenyeres, 2006, 13 mins)
Saturday 28 June
4pm
Hukkle (d. György Pálfi, 2002, 75 mins)
War Next Door (Csendes éj, d. Péter Politzer, 2006, 11 mins)
The Making of an Englishman (d. Kevin Macdonald, 5 min extract)
6.30 pm
Iska’s Journey (Iszka utazása, d. Csaba Bollók, 2007, 93 mins)
Doll No. 639 (A 639. baba, d. Dési-Móray, 2006, 16 mins)
Sunday 29 June
4 pm
The District (Nyócker!, d. Áron Gauder, 2004, 87 mins)
Day After Day (Afta, d. Kornél Mundruczó, 2000, 25 mins)
6.30 pm
Dealer (d. Benedek Fliegauf, 2004, 130 mins)
After Rain (Eső után, d. Péter Mészáros, 2002, 4 mins)
More info from the cinema website.
I really liked “Kontroll,” which uses mythological motifs but in a pretty cool (and ironical) way. An interesting picture of post-Communist Budapest through its subway system. Attal also has potential as an action director.
I caught Kontroll when it was on C4 the other night, and was fairly impressed with it: if it had trimmed down the endless montages of its “quirky” characters being “quirky” it would have been slightly more effective – it does seem to be in love with its own offbeatness. The sequence when the main character follows “the bear” down the tunnel and finds the “monster” was very memorable.