Werckmeister harmóniák (2000)

Directors:

Béla Tarr
Ágnes Hranitzky (co-director)

Writers:

László Krasznahorkai (novel)
László Krasznahorkai (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

1 February 2001 (Hungary)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

This story takes place in a small town on the Hungarian Plain. In a provincial town, which is surrounded with nothing else but frost...

Plot Keywords:

Small Town | Whale | Circus | Surrealism | Raid

Awards:

5 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Lars Rudolph	...	János Valuska
Peter Fitz	...	György Eszter
Hanna Schygulla	...	Tünde Eszter
János Derzsi	...	Man In The Broad-Cloth Coat
Djoko Rosic	...	Man In Western Boots (as Djoko Rossich)
Tamás Wichmann	...	Man In The Sailor-Cap
Ferenc Kállai	...	Director
Mihály Kormos	...	Factotum
Putyi Horváth	...	Porter (as dr. Horváth Putyi)
Enikö Börcsök
Éva Almássy Albert	...	Aunt Piri (as Almási Albert Éva)
Irén Szajki	...	Mrs. Harrer
Alfréd Járai	...	Lajos Harrer
György Barkó	...	Mr. Nadabán
Lajos Dobák	...	Mr. Volent

Also Known As:

Die werckmeisterschen Harmonien (Germany)
Le armonie di Werckmeister (Italy)
Les Harmonies Werckmeister (France)
Werckmeister Harmonies (International: English title)

Runtime:

145 min

Country:

Hungary | Italy | Germany | France

Language:

Hungarian | Slovak

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Hong Kong:IIA | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Canada:G (Quebec) (DVD rating) | Canada:PG (Alberta) (2003) | France:U | Netherlands:AL | UK:15

Company:

13 Productions

Trivia:

Director Béla Tarr spent almost a year finding the right square for some scenes in the film.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Janos finds Lajos, who is supposedly dead, yet you can clearly see the actor breathing.

Quotes:

János Valuska: You are the sun. The sun doesn't move, this is what it does. You are the Earth. The Earth is here for a start, and then the Earth moves around the sun. And now, we'll have an explanation that simple folks like us can also understand, about immortality...
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Paris, je t'aime (2006)

A Work-of-art

Put it simply, "Werckmeister harmóniák" is one of the most beautiful and haunting European film of the recent years, and maybe the best Hungarian film in decades. After the breakthrough of the acclaimed 7 hours long epic "Sátántangó" in 1994 it took 3 years to complete this masterpiece for Tarr Béla. "Sátántangó" and 'Werckmeister harmóniák" made Tarr one of the most acclaimed and adored directors of the contemporary film making. This mind-blowing story is told in only 37 shots (I counted it myself) some of them lasts for 5 or 6 minutes. Despite the small number of the shots, this film has one of the most effective editing of all time. Every edit is perfectly timed and has a meaning of its own. Kudos to the editor.

The stark black-and-white camerawork is by Medvigy Gábor, and the melancholic music is composed by Víg Mihály. The most harrowing scene is the raid on the town hospital, the longest scene of the film, shot in complete silence. Frightening and senses-staggering, the picture of the naked old man burns into the soul. Highly recommended, a must-see for anyone who is interested in the recent history of Central-Eastern Europe and wants to understand it.