Love

"Szerelem"/'Love" is considered one of the best films ever made in the history of Hungarian cinema.Its theme as well as acting performances of its main actors are so captivating that it can easily be included in the list of greatest films ever made in the history of world cinema.There are remarkable acting performances by Lili Darvas,Mari Töröcsik and Iván Darvas.However,what makes Szerelem a very special film is its ability to capitalize on a bunch of lies which are woven in its scheme of narrative elements.The whole idea of director Karoly Makk and his screen writer Peter Bacso is to suggest how far can one go with lies.One has to be genuinely artistic for having one's lies accepted by others.They chose to take inspiration from a short story by famous Hungarian writer Tibor Déry who saw worst days under communist rule when ordinary people were imprisoned without the knowledge of their relatives about their well being.This film's title love has multiple connotations.Hence,it is for viewers to make their own judgments whether they take it as a love of a mother for her son who is not present in her midst or the love of a wife for her husband who is imprisoned.

This movie artfully presents a strong psychological portrait of an aging Hungarian woman and her daughter in law. The sense of realism is very strong, in spite of a rather unconventional technique of focusing on objects or cutting to memories...in fact, these occasional jerky cuts enhance the realism of the characters.

It is slow paced, but very believable, and I found it to be extremely compelling to watch.

After i read the synopsis, i thought this was going to be a tear-jerker, one of those movies which they manipulate viewers emotionally. I like many such movies even though i don't consider them as great ones, so i watched it too. I was wrong. Whereas this movie is indeed emotionally impactful, it does it in a subtle/artistic and majestic way, without being some kind of "misery porn".

This is a great drama, sad and even devastating at times but at the same time, the protagonist held her head high, a true everyday heroine, trying hard to help the people she loves, in really hard times. This is not a movie, this is a lesson of dignity, so to speak. Great acting and directing.

I would have rated it higher if i loved this ending more. By no means it was a bad ending, it's still a powerful ending.

Love between husband and wife. A tender film. Terrible historical times in Hungary for people who were honest and had principles. Wonderful performances of the mother, son and most of all the daughter-in-law Luca (Mari Torocsik). Director Zoltan Fabri introduced Ms Torocsik to Hungarian cinema by giving her the main role in in "Merry Go-Round." Lili Darvas as the dementia-affected dying mother-in-law of Luca gives an elegant performance. Karoly Makk's contributions are the visuals and the delicate editing of dry leaves and the mirror images of the wet and desolate roads. A typical top-notch Hungarian film of the Seventies that saw the emergence of directors Fabri, Istvan Szabo and Sandor Sara. Deserved the Jury Prize at Cannes, losing out the top spot to Losey's "The Go-Between."

'Can you get used to me again?' asks Janos.

'I love you', Luca replies.

'I've grown old', says Janos Luca washes his body.

'Will you sleep with me tonight? Asks Janos.

'Yes.' 'Will you stay with me all night?' 'Yes. Every night, as long as I live', replies Luca.

It is almost the only words spoken between them and it was near the end of the film. Early on we see Janos's, dying, bedridden mother but we never see him with her and it is Luca, her daughter-in-law most of the time. Luca tells her that the doctor says she is well and will live to a hundred years. We are not sure but we are not too sure of anything. There are her flashbacks when she was beautiful and then she has some wonderful letters that Luca reads for her or she can sometimes through her magnifying glass but we realise his letters cannot be true because we gradually realise that Janos must be a political prisoner. It is a simple tale but such waiting, longing and tenderness and towards the end it is almost unbearably difficult and intense. The cinematography is brilliant and it is splendid throughout and the acting tremendous.