Radmila Djurica

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Another small and unpretentious film festival, Palić  International Film Festival founded in 1992 in Subotica, Serbia ended last night. 17th Issue of the festival  this year substrated all values of European film. And to make things clear, Palić Film Festival has an international character and this year presented New Belgian Film and Hungarian Cinematography in the section of a New Hungarian Film, beside the usual competitive program at Official Selection and Parallels and Encounters. But first things first, Palić  International Film Festival 2010, before the beginning, awarded with laureate Želimir Žilnik, ex Jugoslavian black wave filmmaker with prestigeous Erste Underground Spirit Award. "The work of Želimir Žilnik is deeply etched in the history of world cinema as the voice of the oppressed and humiliated, the voice of individuals and marginal groups, as a rebellion against any repressive social system. The consistency of his struggle is proved by the fact that there is hardly any European post-war ideology which he has not disputed, leaving behind a document that lasts and remains as the evidence of the time he worked in. As a driving force of the Yugoslav 'black wave', he introduced this movement to the world cinema with his Early Works (1969), which was awarded the Golden Bear in Berlin. In addition to filmmaking, Želimir Žilnik has made a huge contribution to the independent film scene through education of young film enthusiasts, numerous workshops and lectures held in our region and across Europe", it is said in the explanation of the Festival.

l.    An International Jury at the 17th European Film Festival Palić held at Palić Lake in Serbia (with juriest Hans Christian Leitich, Jaana Puskala, Iva Krajnc, Vladimir Paskaljević and Eran Kolirin) decided to award Golden Tower For The Best Film How I Ended The End Of The Summer directed by  Aleksei Popogrebsky. The Jury explained the decision: "Expanding the concept of a psycho thriller, a maximum of effects with a minimum of means is achieved by superb use of sound design, naturalistic as well as symbolic images and directing the actors. This is used for a message, which underlines the necessity to communicate in an alienated world, between people, between generations, between old and new schools of thinking."     While Palić Tower For The Best Director went to a film The Robber directed by Benjamin Heisenberg, for „ extracting a beautiful thesis about compulsiveness as a mean for salvation and the everlasting struggle for freedom - in the disguise of a genre film. By displaying a variety of narrative rhythms, the film manages to move between naturalism in daily routines and the pace of the protagonist's soul „

Special Mention Award  went to a film Gordos by Daniel Sánchez Arévalo„for celebrating the lust for life and making us hungry and horny in times of crisis. Funny films are important, and they are easily overlooked - so we were pleased to give a special mention to a colorful play on the tragicomic subject of body weight„  
Tolerance Award went to Street Days  directed by Levan Koguashvili „for its way of building moral suspense in a slice of life narrative, for its outstanding, mostly non-professional actors performance and for its promotion of values without judging or moralizing, in a superior and refined way.“   And Special Mention to The Temptation Of St. Tony by Veiko Õunpuu, „for its deconstruction of narrative in a spectacular cinematic way, for its contagious sense of absurdistic humor, for its irresistible images.“ 

 Hungarian Cinematography Right now I would like to focus on the New Hungarian film,  shown on Palić Film Festival in Serbia. The film is about political changes in Hungary to deal with political enemies of a post II World War and communist informers: film that clearly describes the actual atmosphere of Hungarian society in 70s. Peter is a critic that has been sent to Brussels, by Hungarian secret police, to put up Anna Kéthly, a social democratic politician, to come back from exile to Hungary. Anna Kéthly is Hungary's most influential émigré politician Anna Kéthly. And Kéthly is a woman who has tried to uncover real Kadar goverment (and post II World War Hungarian society) and revolution in 1956, but has been forced to leave Hungary and exile to Brussels. The meetings in Brussel, between Peter and Anne, are clever, romantic (inspite of a great age difference), also filled with warm old memories and burried emotions, to a very surface.       The story is directed by female director of ex Soviet era in Eastern Europe, Marta Meszaros, by screenplay adapted from Anne’s  semi-autobiographical diary. The film is truly powerful insight of a hard communist political impact on personal lives. The Last Report on Anna really does describe life of a social democrat politician Anna Kéthly, appointing greatly at nostalgia and a great emotional loss of Anna, shown through Anna’s personal memories, ever so intelligently put. It is  a utterly compelling story about an exceptional fidelity and passion.