The Witness

Rating:
Summary: "Well, comrade Pelikan, life is not all beer and skittles.."
Review: As being a Hungarian myself, I might have a soft spot for this film, but I find it extremely funny anyway.However, I feel I should add some background to those who never lived in a totalitarian personality cult. An era where the best was to keep your mouth shut even among your best friends, for you could not be sure who will report on you. In an era where a big black car might have stopped at your house in the middle of the night to take you and never let you go again. In an era where when deciding about executives, it was your loyalty that mattered not your skill or know-how. Where everyone stated the lemon to be an orange, if it was the dictum of the leaders. Where not clapping hard enough when "our leader" Rakosi addressed the crowd was enough for imprisonment.
All the events described in this film might seem absurd - but I have to say they easily could have and did happen during the '50s in the East of Europe.Although the regime softened a bit, in 1969 making this film was still not the safest thing to. Not surprisingly it wasn't aired for almost a decade. But since then, it became a cult film by any means. Lines like "Well, comrade Pelikan, life is not all beer and skittles.." are known and quoted by everyone.

Rating:
Summary: Don't call it a lemon, comrade. It's a Hungarian orange.
Review: I rank this with "Dr. Strangelove" as one of the funniest political satires I have ever seen. I saw it about 18 years ago at the Mill Valley Film Festival in Marin County, California. I am not Hungarian and have never lived under communism, yet I laughed out of recognition at Peter Bocso's critique of a system so involved with policing itself against imaginary reactionaries that it stops taking care of practical business. The hero is an everyman in charge of flood control at a dam. He is taken to the capital to be a witness in a show trial. Meanwhile, who is minding the dam? While he waits for the court to call on him, the star witness is given a series of do-nothing jobs for which he would not be qualified even if they weren't bogus. The funniest involves supervising the development of the first Hungarian orange (Magyar narancs) which actually turns out to be a lemon. Is it politically incorrect to call a lemon "a lemon"?

Rating:
Summary: Don't call it a lemon, comrade. It's a Hungarian orange.
Review: I rank this with "Dr. Strangelove" as one of the funniest political satires I have ever seen. I saw it about 18 years ago at the Mill Valley Film Festival in Marin County, California. I am not Hungarian and have never lived under communism, yet I laughed out of recognition at Peter Bocso's critique of a system so involved with policing itself against imaginary reactionaries that it stops taking care of practical business. The hero is an everyman in charge of flood control at a dam. He is taken to the capital to be a witness in a show trial. Meanwhile, who is minding the dam? While he waits for the court to call on him, the star witness is given a series of do-nothing jobs for which he would not be qualified even if they weren't bogus. The funniest involves supervising the development of the first Hungarian orange (Magyar narancs) which actually turns out to be a lemon. Is it politically incorrect to call a lemon "a lemon"?

Rating:
Summary: Dr. Strangelove revisited
Review: Peter Bacso's "The Witness" is a great satire, probably the best one on communist regimes. Its humor is quite similar to Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove. This film openly ridicules the communist regime. No wonder it was banned immediatelly after post-production was completed.
The only handicap of this film is that it was not made in America, thus, hardly anyone knows about it over here. This shouldn't discourage people from buying this witty comedy. Very highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: The ultimate cult movie
Review: This film can probably be called THE Hungarian cult movie.
It is a very sad comedy, but with a lot of hilariously funny and original ideas. Made in 1969, a time of political liberalization, it was banned before its first screening and could not be shown in Hungary till 1978. Although the plot takes place in the Rákosi era (1949-1956), the darkest years in Hungarian communism, its anarchical criticism of the communist regime also had impact on the time it was made in.

Rating:
Summary: Classic
Review: This movie is fantastic. Helps to know a little bit about the political situation depicted, but great acting. I don't know about this dvd edition as I picked up A Tanu in Hungary. Great movie.

And even better news from the company Dreamquest:

"Also in 2004 they plan to release Márton Keleti's The Corporal and the Others (1965)" This is definitely my altime favorite Hungarian film. Very funny stuff.