Those Who Remained

Pretty unremarkable movie. Everything is so plain, the story is so simple and pointless, characters boring... They made more beautiful movies in Grujoland before Grujo went there (Son of Saul, On Body and Soul...). :D

A wellplayed touching film. Good acting, Good subject, Good shooting. Recommended.

This is a story of two survivors of the Holocaust: a middle aged doctor, Aladar, and a 16-year-old girl, Klara, who were total strangers to each other. While losing their loved ones and still suffering, they meet and start a father-daughter like relationship which some see as peculiar. But this relationship soon becomes special, and eventually heals their scars within. Although this movie is about people's recovery from the traumatic experiences of war, I saw it as a platonic love story of two lost souls. Sadness is always in Aladar's eyes and Klara often wakes up screaming from a nightmare. The inner scars of the two are so deep that they can't even express their grief properly. So seeing them cuddling close together, gradually restoring their lives was heart-warming to see. A very subtle yet very moving film.

Saw it on premiere on september 24 at Budapest's Corvin Mozi.

Probably the most essential thing to know about this movie is that it was made for television in the first place and later they considered pushing it into the Oscars, for big screens, as they thought it has the potential to win something. It probably has that potential but I don't think that it would be because the movie is that good... maybe for the acting as it was quite strong from the two main protagonists, or for the screenplay. Oh and for the music, that is indeed Oscar-worthy for today's standards. But if for anything other than that... well, then I would smell something fishinness behind that.

So as a TV movie this picture is far better than great. It has a distinctive visual atmosphere with its gray fuminess and late, cold autumny colors, the cinematography is beyond adequate for such TV movie norma, the world the story plays in is really authentic, beholds many details that reflects those old times. The dialouges are clevelry written, they behold the realism but also some theatrical factor for dramatic purposes. The acting is top-notch from the main protagonists, they bring well detailed characteristics into their relationship by which we really hold their connection close to our hearts, but overall all the cast did a good job. The soundtrack has probably the most appeal for an award as it has that really almost-but-not-yet cheesiness that can easily win your ears over, but overall a very pleasant music to listen to, reminded me of Clint Mansell's previous works.

What the whole movie might fall short on is the world building that plays in the post-war dictaturic times. There are some snipets about the oppression they maintained on all these people lived in the post-war city, however, other than having some tricky questions from the "comrades" it never went further than that, it didn't fully bring the overall alienating effect it should have for the story/narrative. It was kinda like only a world building element in order to remind the auidence what times this plays in, never fully did anything more than that. And probably, the ending, which refers onto this dictature didn't feel that cathartic, because of that "only-world-building-element" reason.

Talking with others on premiere some people found the whole fast paced evolution of the protagoninst's relationship unconvincing and out of place, that it needed much deeper, elaborative, slower tendencies to go through. Personaly I had no issue with it at all. I found the relationship really natural and organic in its own way, it was indeed a connection that is not that easily achievable by anyone, but these two somehow had the luck to have a mostly healthy relationship that helped both of them in some ways to heal all the scars the war times brought onto them.

So... basicly, that's all I got to say about this movie. From TV movie standpoints I found it really solidly done, a nicely put together motion picture that is pleasant to watch. For Oscar worthy theatrical experience it might fall behind a bit as it has some lack of details and elaboratness, so - even though I have no respect for Oscars nowadays - I kinda feel this movie has only oscar-worthiness on a few, specific fields and even there there is always much bigger fishes to fight against on awards like this. Again, if it wins any award other than the music, acting, or (maybe) for screenplay then there is something fishy back there in Hollywood (but it's Hollywood, the Oscars, so there is more dirty business than anything else today).

Rating: 6.8/10

I found this to be a superb movie, in content, script, acting, music, so many ways. Most of all it simply grabbed me by the heart.

The two main characters Klara and Aldo are the only surviving members of their respective families not long after WW II and living in Hungary. Where the communists had taken over.

She is 16 and very out of sorts which is understandable. She has no one and thinks she might be somehow reunited with her parents. He is 45 and alone as his wife and two sons didn't survive and he somehow survived a concentration camp alone.

Some may say the story is unrealistic, but to me that really didn't matter. With so many movies about love lost due to war, it is heartwarming to see a movie about two lost souls finding comfort with each other, albeit in an awkward situation. Maybe that couldn't have happened at that place and that time, but it doesn't matter as this is a movie and everything felt very real to me.

Any shortcomings pointed out by others can be overcome with the superb acting of the main characters as played by Abigel Szoke and Karoly Hajduk. I could especially relate to her portayal of Klara as she would cling to him, having been left with an aunt and feeling lost and forgotten.

It was in no way easy for them to regain any kind of love in their life after they had lost their entire families. But how nice to watch a film about new kinds of love forming slowly over time, even if in a difficult post-war country to be in.