A love story measured in decades, borders, and letters that couldn't cross the Iron Curtain.
A story of two young people in Hungary, Jancsi and Kata. First they are good friends, later lovers. Soon after the 1956 Revolution Kata leaves Hungary, Jancsi stays there. After 10 years Jancsi is allowed to visit Kata in France, their love is reborn, but after a short, very happy period Jancsi has to return to Hungary and their love fades as years have gone by.
Direction
Szabó's fluid camera makes decades feel like one breath held too long.
Cinematography
Golden-hour Hungary versus grey Paris—the visuals *are* the heartbreak.
Acting
Bálint and Halász age twenty years in their eyes alone.
Director
István Szabó
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Lovefilm pioneered the 'private history' genre in Hungarian cinema, where national trauma lives in bedrooms and train stations rather than battlefields.
Director István Szabó later won an Oscar for *Mephisto*; he considered this his most autobiographical work, drawing from his own generation's impossible loves.
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