The Notebook
Written by János Szász and András Szekér
Directed by János Szász
Hungary, 2013
We’ve seen countless films depicting the monstrosity of World War II, but The Notebook gives us an unflinching look at the monsters it created. Both observant and nonjudgmental, director, János Szász, drops us into a war zone bereft of borders or buffers. Allegiances crumble and shift like the tattered landscape, where even familial ties yield to stark necessity. This is a challenging film that reaffirms the survival of the human spirit, not through acts of courage or bravery, but by harnessing our spitefulness and hatred to outlast the enemy. Whether the soul can endure such a coldhearted transformation is left for the audience to decide.
For most filmgoers, it’s impossible to comprehend the daily horror of living in a residential war zone and the toll it takes on the human spirit. Based on the French novel by Agota Kristof,...
Written by János Szász and András Szekér
Directed by János Szász
Hungary, 2013
We’ve seen countless films depicting the monstrosity of World War II, but The Notebook gives us an unflinching look at the monsters it created. Both observant and nonjudgmental, director, János Szász, drops us into a war zone bereft of borders or buffers. Allegiances crumble and shift like the tattered landscape, where even familial ties yield to stark necessity. This is a challenging film that reaffirms the survival of the human spirit, not through acts of courage or bravery, but by harnessing our spitefulness and hatred to outlast the enemy. Whether the soul can endure such a coldhearted transformation is left for the audience to decide.
For most filmgoers, it’s impossible to comprehend the daily horror of living in a residential war zone and the toll it takes on the human spirit. Based on the French novel by Agota Kristof,...
- 9/5/2014
- by J.R. Kinnard
- SoundOnSight
Survival and the hardships of war are explored from a very specific and thought-provoking perspective in János Szász’ “The Notebook.” A pair of twins in Hungary during World War II is left to fend for themselves when their parents must move away escaping prosecution. Their hateful grandmother, who is supposed to care for them, forces them to work tirelessly and shows no compassion despite their young age. Progressively, they desensitize themselves by enduring pain, starvation and getting rid of any memories from their past life, including their mother. Szász’ savagely beautiful film delivers bleakness enhance with a touch of fantasy, but always aware of the dark world in which his characters inhabit. Heartbreakingly poetic and visually elegant, “The Notebook,” based on Agota Kristof’s novel Le grand cahier, is one of the most daring European films of the year. The film was Hungary’s Official Oscar Submission last year and it made it to the final 9-film-shortli out of 76 titles submitted.
Szász kindly talked to us from Hungary about the performances in his film, the origin story of the project, and the hint of hope underneath the darkness
Read More: Review "The Notebook" (Le grand cahier)
Carlos Aguilar: Tell me about the origin of the project, where you interested in the novel beforehand?
János Szász: “The Notebook” is a very old story. 15 years ago, the first time I read the book I fell in love with it and I immediately wanted to take the rights, everyone laughed at me for that. Getting the rights was very difficult because they were taken for 15 years, and many directors wanted to make it into a movie. I had made the short “The Witman Boys,” which is also a story about two very young souls, in a way I wanted to make another film in this genre. I was in the queue to get the rights.
Finally, approximately four or five years ago I had the fortune of meeting the author Agota Kristof. Every character in the novel comes from memories of her life. In 1956, during the anti-communist revolution, she got pregnant. She and her family had to leave Hungary. She didn’t want to leave because she loved this country. It was a very dark time in her life, because she didn’t want to be a deserter, as she would say. She died two years before we began to shoot the film. She was a wonderful person. We became very close. She was someone who could not lie. She didn’t want to lie about her life. She didn’t want to lie about how hard it was for her and her brothers. She told me it was very painful to write this book.
Aguilar: Both twins, László Gyémánt and András Gyémánt, deliver marvelous performances. They are unflinching and naturalistic throughout. Was it a difficult task for you to elicit this from the young boys?
János Szász: To tell you the truth, it was really easy [Laughs]. We found these two kids in a very small village in the south of Hungary living in poverty. They had been living a life that was not very pleasant. They lived with their grandmother and they had no money. They, despite being children, had to work everyday. When I visited them I started telling them about the war and how hard life is, etc. They were just laughing at my face. They told me, “Janos, we know exactly how hard life is.” They had their own similar experiences, so what you feel when you see them in the film comes from their past. They were able to base the story on those experiences. For the scenes where they beat each other, we talked to Andras, and it was clear that this sort of thing has happened in their lives.
There were difficulties at times. Imagine two boys from the countryside who suddenly find themselves shooting a film. They have their own van, everybody loves them, but it’s only for 50 days of shooting. Suddenly it stops, and it was hard for them. We couldn’t take them back to where we found them like if they were props. I’m very happy that we still have a very good relationship and to know that they are in a college in Budapest. They have a chance to try to have a better life now. On set, what was difficult was that, even though their presence is strong, they were two amateurs. All the other actors are professionals, and it was hard for them to achieve this kind of simplicity. As a director, my job was to help those actors be simple, not to do much.
Aguilar: The film has a specific visuals aesthetic. It is realist, but also ventures into a sort of dark fairytale. How did you achieve this particular atmosphere?
János Szász: Christian Berger was our cinematographer. He is great. He has worked in films like “The White Ribbon.” First off, this is an adaptation, and I, Janos, as the one adapting, have to think about a lot of things. In the book there are no names for the boys and the voice is always in plural, “we decided” or “we did…” I told Christian that it was very important to find this “We.” Therefore, we chose to shoot the film in cinemascope and to always have these two guys together in every frame.
They are always together, but at the end we notice this erosion in their relationship. I did think of it as a dark fairytale, but it was very hard to make a war movie without showing war. There is abuse and violence, but I think my intention to make a cold fairytale came across. I didn’t want to get too close to things, I wanted visual distance, that’s why I was knocking on Christian’s door. I wanted to find someone who doesn’t want to get too close, someone who doesn’t want to provoke your emotions. He is a master at keeping that distance, while still taking the audience close to the story.
Aguilar: The notebook in the story seems to represent an alternative reality for these two boys. What are your though on the role it plays?
János Szász: The notebook is the only place where they are honest. It is like a priest, like a confessional for these two kids. It is a place for fantasy, that’s why I decided not to use only the words but to bring the notebook to life. It is also a very secretive tunnel into the truth. If you are Catholic, every Sunday you’d go to church and talk to the priest, but in the story the priest is not a person. This fairytale territory represents freedom.
Aguilar: In order to survive the twins desensitize themselves, they try to forget their loved ones to become stronger. Where you ever concerned of how bleak or how dark you could make the film? I think there is a compelling sense of unyielding courage to your approach.
János Szász: I think the novel is much more darker. For me it is not that dark because it is the story about two boys who are taken to live with their unknown grandmother. The mother tells them they must continue learning, but that above all they must survive. These are two good boys, and they listen to their mother. They will continue learning, but the subject has changed, the subject now is the war. They are learning how to survive it. They are gaining skills, but even if they come out physically alive, do they survive the war mentally? They need to be strong, they need to be able not to eat for days, and they need to forget about emotions. To have emotions during the war would be like committing suicide for them. They have a new moral code, which during the war is not so black and white. You can’t really judge their actions towards other people. Even with their grandmother, there is hatred there, but under the skin of that hatred one can see a special type of love. The bleakness is not so black and white.
Aguilar: Despite all the events and situations these two boys must go through, do you think there is a place for hope in their journey?
János Szász: Personally I think there is a lot of hope in the story. They still preserve a certain kind of innocence. They have gone through terrible things, but they had no choice but to do those things. Eventually, they must part and separate, but this represents hope. This is their only hope. One of them goes west, just like the author Agota Kristof, and the other stays in Hungary. This is their hope for a new life. You must know that this based on the first book of a tetralogy. In the second part they return and they reconnect.
"The Notebook" opens today in NYC at the Quad Cinema and in L.A. at the Laemmle Royal in Santa Monica...
Szász kindly talked to us from Hungary about the performances in his film, the origin story of the project, and the hint of hope underneath the darkness
Read More: Review "The Notebook" (Le grand cahier)
Carlos Aguilar: Tell me about the origin of the project, where you interested in the novel beforehand?
János Szász: “The Notebook” is a very old story. 15 years ago, the first time I read the book I fell in love with it and I immediately wanted to take the rights, everyone laughed at me for that. Getting the rights was very difficult because they were taken for 15 years, and many directors wanted to make it into a movie. I had made the short “The Witman Boys,” which is also a story about two very young souls, in a way I wanted to make another film in this genre. I was in the queue to get the rights.
Finally, approximately four or five years ago I had the fortune of meeting the author Agota Kristof. Every character in the novel comes from memories of her life. In 1956, during the anti-communist revolution, she got pregnant. She and her family had to leave Hungary. She didn’t want to leave because she loved this country. It was a very dark time in her life, because she didn’t want to be a deserter, as she would say. She died two years before we began to shoot the film. She was a wonderful person. We became very close. She was someone who could not lie. She didn’t want to lie about her life. She didn’t want to lie about how hard it was for her and her brothers. She told me it was very painful to write this book.
Aguilar: Both twins, László Gyémánt and András Gyémánt, deliver marvelous performances. They are unflinching and naturalistic throughout. Was it a difficult task for you to elicit this from the young boys?
János Szász: To tell you the truth, it was really easy [Laughs]. We found these two kids in a very small village in the south of Hungary living in poverty. They had been living a life that was not very pleasant. They lived with their grandmother and they had no money. They, despite being children, had to work everyday. When I visited them I started telling them about the war and how hard life is, etc. They were just laughing at my face. They told me, “Janos, we know exactly how hard life is.” They had their own similar experiences, so what you feel when you see them in the film comes from their past. They were able to base the story on those experiences. For the scenes where they beat each other, we talked to Andras, and it was clear that this sort of thing has happened in their lives.
There were difficulties at times. Imagine two boys from the countryside who suddenly find themselves shooting a film. They have their own van, everybody loves them, but it’s only for 50 days of shooting. Suddenly it stops, and it was hard for them. We couldn’t take them back to where we found them like if they were props. I’m very happy that we still have a very good relationship and to know that they are in a college in Budapest. They have a chance to try to have a better life now. On set, what was difficult was that, even though their presence is strong, they were two amateurs. All the other actors are professionals, and it was hard for them to achieve this kind of simplicity. As a director, my job was to help those actors be simple, not to do much.
Aguilar: The film has a specific visuals aesthetic. It is realist, but also ventures into a sort of dark fairytale. How did you achieve this particular atmosphere?
János Szász: Christian Berger was our cinematographer. He is great. He has worked in films like “The White Ribbon.” First off, this is an adaptation, and I, Janos, as the one adapting, have to think about a lot of things. In the book there are no names for the boys and the voice is always in plural, “we decided” or “we did…” I told Christian that it was very important to find this “We.” Therefore, we chose to shoot the film in cinemascope and to always have these two guys together in every frame.
They are always together, but at the end we notice this erosion in their relationship. I did think of it as a dark fairytale, but it was very hard to make a war movie without showing war. There is abuse and violence, but I think my intention to make a cold fairytale came across. I didn’t want to get too close to things, I wanted visual distance, that’s why I was knocking on Christian’s door. I wanted to find someone who doesn’t want to get too close, someone who doesn’t want to provoke your emotions. He is a master at keeping that distance, while still taking the audience close to the story.
Aguilar: The notebook in the story seems to represent an alternative reality for these two boys. What are your though on the role it plays?
János Szász: The notebook is the only place where they are honest. It is like a priest, like a confessional for these two kids. It is a place for fantasy, that’s why I decided not to use only the words but to bring the notebook to life. It is also a very secretive tunnel into the truth. If you are Catholic, every Sunday you’d go to church and talk to the priest, but in the story the priest is not a person. This fairytale territory represents freedom.
Aguilar: In order to survive the twins desensitize themselves, they try to forget their loved ones to become stronger. Where you ever concerned of how bleak or how dark you could make the film? I think there is a compelling sense of unyielding courage to your approach.
János Szász: I think the novel is much more darker. For me it is not that dark because it is the story about two boys who are taken to live with their unknown grandmother. The mother tells them they must continue learning, but that above all they must survive. These are two good boys, and they listen to their mother. They will continue learning, but the subject has changed, the subject now is the war. They are learning how to survive it. They are gaining skills, but even if they come out physically alive, do they survive the war mentally? They need to be strong, they need to be able not to eat for days, and they need to forget about emotions. To have emotions during the war would be like committing suicide for them. They have a new moral code, which during the war is not so black and white. You can’t really judge their actions towards other people. Even with their grandmother, there is hatred there, but under the skin of that hatred one can see a special type of love. The bleakness is not so black and white.
Aguilar: Despite all the events and situations these two boys must go through, do you think there is a place for hope in their journey?
János Szász: Personally I think there is a lot of hope in the story. They still preserve a certain kind of innocence. They have gone through terrible things, but they had no choice but to do those things. Eventually, they must part and separate, but this represents hope. This is their only hope. One of them goes west, just like the author Agota Kristof, and the other stays in Hungary. This is their hope for a new life. You must know that this based on the first book of a tetralogy. In the second part they return and they reconnect.
"The Notebook" opens today in NYC at the Quad Cinema and in L.A. at the Laemmle Royal in Santa Monica...
- 8/29/2014
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
Behind Every Great War Is a Great Story: Szasz’s Captivating, Grotesque Portrait of Life During Wartime
World War II takes on the ambience of an exquisitely grim fairy tale in Hungarian filmmaker Janos Szasz’s The Notebook, based on the famed novel by Agota Kristof. Reuniting the director with Danish star Ulrich Thomsen, who starred in Szasz’s last film, Opium: Diary of a Madwoman (2007), it’s a strikingly photographed, pervasively bewitching account of adolescent twin boys and their development into (mostly) apathetic killing machines due to the inhumane conditions of wartime. Winning the top prize at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival in 2013, the infrequently working Szasz (also a veteran stage director) is a name ripe for rediscovery, heretofore best known for his 1994 film, Woyzeck (the stage play that would also provide the basis for Herzog’s 1979 version).
Nearing the end of WWII, a privileged father (Ulrich Matthes) decides...
World War II takes on the ambience of an exquisitely grim fairy tale in Hungarian filmmaker Janos Szasz’s The Notebook, based on the famed novel by Agota Kristof. Reuniting the director with Danish star Ulrich Thomsen, who starred in Szasz’s last film, Opium: Diary of a Madwoman (2007), it’s a strikingly photographed, pervasively bewitching account of adolescent twin boys and their development into (mostly) apathetic killing machines due to the inhumane conditions of wartime. Winning the top prize at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival in 2013, the infrequently working Szasz (also a veteran stage director) is a name ripe for rediscovery, heretofore best known for his 1994 film, Woyzeck (the stage play that would also provide the basis for Herzog’s 1979 version).
Nearing the end of WWII, a privileged father (Ulrich Matthes) decides...
- 8/28/2014
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
The Notebook (Le grand cahier) (A nagy füzet) Sony Pictures Classics Reviewed for Shockya by Harvey Karten. Data-based on Rotten Tomatoes Grade: A- Director: János Szász Screenplay: Agota Kristof, András Szekér, Tom Abrams – adapted from Agota Kristof’s novel (see below) Cast: András Gyémánt, Gyöngyvér Bognár, László Gyémánt, Piroska Molnár, András Réthelyi, Ulrich Matthes Screened at: Sony, NYC, 8/13/14 Opens: August 29, 2014 In his 1954 dystopian novel “Lord of the Flies,” William Golding creates a world of British boys as sole inhabitants of an island without adult authorities. They try to govern themselves but end up with disaster. Simply put, the youngsters become barbarians. In “The Notebook,” we discover [ Read More ]
The post The Notebook Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post The Notebook Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 8/17/2014
- by Harvey Karten
- ShockYa
Sony Pictures Classics acquired North American rights to The Notebook, Hungary’s submission for Best Foreign Language Film. Janos Szasz directed the pic and Intuit Pictures produced with Hunnia Filmstudio, Amour Fou and Dolce Vita Films. The film, adapted from Agota Kristof’s novel, received The Grand Prix Crystal Globe, the top prize at the 2013 Karlovy Vary Film Festival. It made its North American premiere at Toronto. Spc made the deal with Beta Cinema. Set on the onset of WWII, pic tells the story of 13-year-old twins abandoned by their parents and forced to live with their cruel grandmother in a village on the Hungarian border. Studying the evil surrounding them, the twins learn to rely on their loyalty to one another, ultimately surviving in the face of challenging circumstances.
- 1/3/2014
- by MIKE FLEMING JR
- Deadline
Sony Pictures Classics has taken North American rights from Beta Cinema to Hungary’s shortlisted foreign-language Oscar submission.
Janos Szasz directed the Intuit Pictures film, made in co-production with Hunnia Filmstudio, Amour Fou and Dolce Vita Films.
The Notebook is adapted from Agota Kristof’s novel of the same name and received The Grand Prix Crystal Globe at Karlovy Vary Film Festival 2013, where it received its world premiere ahead of the North American premiere in Toronto.
Ulrich Thomsen and Ulrich Matthes star in the WWII story of 13-year-old twins abandoned by their parents to their cruel grandmother in a village on the Hungarian border.
Janos Szasz directed the Intuit Pictures film, made in co-production with Hunnia Filmstudio, Amour Fou and Dolce Vita Films.
The Notebook is adapted from Agota Kristof’s novel of the same name and received The Grand Prix Crystal Globe at Karlovy Vary Film Festival 2013, where it received its world premiere ahead of the North American premiere in Toronto.
Ulrich Thomsen and Ulrich Matthes star in the WWII story of 13-year-old twins abandoned by their parents to their cruel grandmother in a village on the Hungarian border.
- 1/2/2014
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
German sales-outfit Beta Films has inked a string of deals on its Oscar contenders Two Lives [pictured] (Germany), The Notebook (Le Grand Cahier) (Hungary) and Child’s Pose (Romania).
Two Lives, starring Liv Ullmann and Juliane Koehler has been picked up by Cdi Films for Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, Strada Films for Greece and Swallow Wings for Taiwan.
Sundance Selects recently picked up Us rights.
The Notebook, based on Agota Kristof’s anti-war story, will be released in theaters in Sweden/Denmark by Njuta Films, Portugal by Films4You, Taiwan by Catchplay and South Korea by Sponge.
Argentina’s Alfa Films secured the rights of Berlinale winner Child’s Pose.
Venice Orizzonti Best Director-winner Still Life has sold to France (Version Originale/Condor), Sweden (Folkets Bio), Norway (Arthaus), Greece (Feelgood Entertainment), Switzerland (Filmcoopi) as well as to Korea (Dreamwest Pictures).
Italy’s Academy Two and Mexico’s Gussi acquired the rights for Bernhard Rose’s The Devil’s Violinist...
Two Lives, starring Liv Ullmann and Juliane Koehler has been picked up by Cdi Films for Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, Strada Films for Greece and Swallow Wings for Taiwan.
Sundance Selects recently picked up Us rights.
The Notebook, based on Agota Kristof’s anti-war story, will be released in theaters in Sweden/Denmark by Njuta Films, Portugal by Films4You, Taiwan by Catchplay and South Korea by Sponge.
Argentina’s Alfa Films secured the rights of Berlinale winner Child’s Pose.
Venice Orizzonti Best Director-winner Still Life has sold to France (Version Originale/Condor), Sweden (Folkets Bio), Norway (Arthaus), Greece (Feelgood Entertainment), Switzerland (Filmcoopi) as well as to Korea (Dreamwest Pictures).
Italy’s Academy Two and Mexico’s Gussi acquired the rights for Bernhard Rose’s The Devil’s Violinist...
- 11/8/2013
- by andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
- ScreenDaily
Hungary has chosen Janos Szasz's "Le Grand Cahier" ("The Notebook") as its official submission for the 2014 Foreign-Language Oscar catetory. Winner of the Crystal Globe and European Cinemas Label Award at the 48th Karlovy Vary Film Festival in the Czech Republic earlier this year, the film centers on 13-year-old twin boys (Ulrich Thomsen and Ulrich Matthes) sent to live with their malevolent grandmother during World War II. Szasz and co-writer Andras Szeker adapted the film from the 1986 novel of the same name by Hungarian author Agota Kristof. "The Notebook" was shot by Oscar-nominated cinematographer Christian Berger ("The White Ribbon"). Watch the compelling trailer below. Hungarian entries haven't been nominated for best foreign language film since 1988's "Hanussen," directed by Istvan Szabo, who won in 1981 for "Mephisto." Last week, Romania submitted "Child's Pose," winner of Berlinale's Golden Bear, to the Oscars. The deadline for all foreign language submissions...
- 8/7/2013
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
Looks like Eastern Europe is currently leading the way in this year's Oscar race for Best Foreign Language Film. Last week, Romania was the first country to officially submit an entry, with Berlinale Golden Bear winner "Child's Pose." Today, Hungary joined them with another European festival champ: "The Notebook," which won the top prize at last month's Karlovy Vary fest. I'm afraid to say I missed the film there, though subsequent word on it has been highly positive. Based on an acclaimed, widely translated 1986 bestseller by Hungarian author Agota Kristof, Janosz Szasz's film tells the story of teenage twin brothers...
- 8/7/2013
- by Guy Lodge
- Hitfix
The 48th edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (Kviff) came to a close in the Bohemian town of the same name this weekend, with Hungarian WWII tale "Le Grand Cahier," based on the bestseller "The Notebook" from Agota Kristof, taking the Crystal Globe for best feature. The competition jury, presided over by Polish director Agnieszka Holland ("In Darkness," episodes of "Treme," "The Wire" and "The Killing") and also including Tribeca Artistic Director Frédéric Boyer, awarded Ben Wheatley's black-and-white oddity "A Field in England" their Special Jury Prize, while U.S. indie "Bluebird" from Lance Edmands, which premiered at Tribeca, walked away with a shared Best Actress award. Local arthouse veteran Jan Hrebejk, whose "Divided We Fall" was nominated for an Oscar in 2001, won Best Director for his latest film, "Honeymoon," which stars his regular lead actress Anna Geislerova as a bride who discovers an ugly episode in...
- 7/8/2013
- by Boyd van Hoeij
- Indiewire
At the closing awards ceremony of the 48th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, Janos Szasz’s "Le Grand Cahier" (Hungary) took the top prize, the Crystal Globe, which comes with $25,000 to be split by director and producer (Sandor Soth). The film also earned the Europa Cinemas Label. (Full list of winners below.) Based on Agota Kristof’s award-winning World War II novel "The Notebook," "Le Grand Cahier" is about 13-year-old twins who go to live with their grandmother during the war. The first feature backed by the new Hungarian Film Fund, "Le Grand Cahier" is co-produced with Austria's Amour Fou, France's Dolce Vita, Germany's Intuit and Hungary's Hunnia Film Studio. Brit filmmaker Ben Wheatley won the special jury prize ($15,000) for "A Field In England," which opened in the UK on Friday. Czech director Jan Hrebejk won best director for his film "Honeymoon," while Czech director Alice Nellis earned the audience award for "Revival.
- 7/7/2013
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Janos Szasz’s Le Grand Cahier walked away with the Crystal Globe at the 48th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.Scroll down for full list of winners
The Hungarian film impressed jury and industry alike with its depiction of 13-year-old twins sent to their grandmother during the Second World War (it is based on Agota Kristof’s award-winning novel The Notebook).
The producer of the film, Sandor Soth [pictured], picked up the award in front of a delighted audience. Le Grand Cahier was co-produced with Austria (Amour Fou), France (Dolce Vita) and Germany (Intuit), and it is the first completed feature to be backed by the new Hungarian Film Fund (the Hungarian production company was Hunnia Film Studio.
The Kviff top prize comes with $25,000 to be split by director and producer. The film also won the Europa Cinemas Label.
Ben Wheatley won the special jury prize (worth $15,000) for A Field In England and appeared in a special video thank...
The Hungarian film impressed jury and industry alike with its depiction of 13-year-old twins sent to their grandmother during the Second World War (it is based on Agota Kristof’s award-winning novel The Notebook).
The producer of the film, Sandor Soth [pictured], picked up the award in front of a delighted audience. Le Grand Cahier was co-produced with Austria (Amour Fou), France (Dolce Vita) and Germany (Intuit), and it is the first completed feature to be backed by the new Hungarian Film Fund (the Hungarian production company was Hunnia Film Studio.
The Kviff top prize comes with $25,000 to be split by director and producer. The film also won the Europa Cinemas Label.
Ben Wheatley won the special jury prize (worth $15,000) for A Field In England and appeared in a special video thank...
- 7/7/2013
- ScreenDaily
Two 13-year-old twin brothers are forced to shack up with their evil, country-bumpkin grandmother during the war in Le Grand Cahier, Hungarian director János Szász's rather detached adaptation of Agota Kristof's heart-rending, French-language WWII bestseller The Notebook. Technically almost too immaculate, the film smoothens many of the original's rough edges, replacing the book's unreliable and disturbing children's point-of-view with a distancing voice-over, cute animated sequences and two stone-faced performances that make it hard to care about these identical siblings who decide to train themselves in cruelty so they'll stand a better
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- 7/7/2013
- by Boyd van Hoeij
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Ben Wheatley’s A Field In England is to receive its first screening at the 48th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival as one of the 14 titles in Competition.
The psychedelic horror film, set during the English Civil War in the mid-17th century, will screen at the festival in the Czech Republic on July 4.
As previously reported, it will be the first UK film to be released simultaneously in cinemas, on DVD, free TV and VoD. This will take place on July 5.
Scroll down for full line-up
The main section of Karlovy Vary will include a further six world and seven international premieres, with new films from six returning directors – two of whom have already won Crystal Globes for Best Film at the festival in recent years.
Krzysztof Krauze and Joanna Kos-Krauze, who won at Kviff in 2005 with My Nikifor, will compete for the third time with the story of Papusza, the first Roma...
The psychedelic horror film, set during the English Civil War in the mid-17th century, will screen at the festival in the Czech Republic on July 4.
As previously reported, it will be the first UK film to be released simultaneously in cinemas, on DVD, free TV and VoD. This will take place on July 5.
Scroll down for full line-up
The main section of Karlovy Vary will include a further six world and seven international premieres, with new films from six returning directors – two of whom have already won Crystal Globes for Best Film at the festival in recent years.
Krzysztof Krauze and Joanna Kos-Krauze, who won at Kviff in 2005 with My Nikifor, will compete for the third time with the story of Papusza, the first Roma...
- 6/4/2013
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
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