Kontroll (2003/2005)
"Kontroll" begins with a Hungarian
man in a button up shirt telling us how the Budapest
transit authority allowed the filmmakers to use their
subway system to make the film we are about to see
even though it displays their employees in a negative
light. It's an odd and ethereal moment at the beginning
of an odd and ethereal film.
Foreign films often expose us to
the ways of life in other nations that we might be
ignorant of were it not for them. Here we discover
that the Hungarian subway system is patrolled by plainclothes
detective who only let their presence be known when
they board a train and put on an official armband.
Then they begin to question passengers and ask for
tickets and passes. It's an odd and intense system
and one that brings drama and violence to the forefront
of the story here. The main characters in "Kontroll"
are such unarmed and un-uniformed men.
Much of the movie is about these
inspectors but it is presented in such a highly stylized
manner that the film becomes much more than a film
about these men. The subway system, in the hands of
neophyte director Nimrod (how unfortunate) Antal,
becomes an urban underground purgatory where men never
see the light of day and nothing but the hellishness
of vandalism, graffiti, violence and timelessness
surrounds them. In the midst of this somnambulist
chaos is Bulcsu, a young, handsome inspector who appears
to be the cock-of-the-walk in the underground. As
the film progresses, he will become the center of
the story and his arc will astound you.
This is an awesome film. The visual
imagery is fantastic. Dark, murky and violent, the
film recalls Walter Hills "Warriors" as easily as
it does Kubrick's "A Clockwork Orange." Fused in our
minds with the films amazing soundtrack by Neo, the
entire film becomes a journey into a netherworld that
is as erotic and as exhilarating as a rave while being
as hellish and as frightening as the most vibrant
of our nightmares. "Kontroll" is a film that takes
you into uncharted territory and holds you there with
an intensity and awe you will not soon forget.
Notes:
In Hungarian with subtitles.
The film has won several awards
including one at Cannes in 2004.
A few Hungarian film directors have
cameos in the film.
Released in Hungary in November
of 2003. The film played several festivals in 2004
including Cannes, Telluride and Toronto. Thinkfilm
released the film to U.S. arthouses beginning in April
of 2005.
In some English speaking regions
the film has been promoted and released using the
typical English spelling of "Control."
Viewed at The Arbor in Austin in
July 2005.
