Set between the period of the Second World War to the Hungarian uprising of 1956, Szabó's powerful cinematic ode relates historical events through the prism of personal experience producing a film of extraordinary intimacy. After his father is killed in the war, Tako, a young Hungarian boy, concocts a fantasy ideal of the parent he never really knew. In the child’s imagination, the figure of the father attains mythical qualities. Convincing himself of his father’s unbridaled bravery, the boy grows into a man and hopes to emulate his dad’s heroism. After falling in love with a Jewish refugee Tako ultimately decides to find out whether his father was truly the noble warrior he’s imagined him to be...

The film mixes poetry, nostalgia, irony and stark images of war and totalitarianism, and confronts the viewers with the reality that salvation can start only from within.

From István Szabó, Oscar-winning director of Mephisto, Colonel Redl, Hanussen, Sunshine and most recently, Being Julia starring Annette Bening.

Special Features:

• Interview with director István Szabó
• Essays