Screening Report on Zoltán Huszárik’s Szindbád

             Szindbád is a 1971 film based on the Szindbád- short stories by Gyula Krúdy. It was directed by Zoltán Huszárik with the cinematographic work of Sándor Sára. This was the director’s first feature length film, and gained recognition both among critics and the audience.

            As Krúdy’s style in literature shared the characteristics of several literary movements such as secession, surrealism, late romanticism, impressionism, symbolism and realism, his works combine associations with time, moods, feelings and strong impressions without an elaborate plot.

            The film genuinely reflects these features of the writer’s style and without a particular plot it rather plays with the writer’s poetic prose concerning the dialogues and the monologues in the film. The fragmented language of the film is transferred from the several short stories about Szindbád’s adventures. Thus the dialogues and monologues might be confusing and distinct from one another as they are not part of the sequence of the plot. There is no chronological order that develops the narrative. The line between life and death are blurred, time becomes elastic and past and present collide in the visions of Szindbád.

            The film is built on impressions that stimulate the senses. The films is a visually gripping experience that employs close ups and macros of food, flowers, raindrops. It was mainly shot in Czechoslovakia with beautiful and authentic places which honestly preserved their 19^th century looks. The elegance of old times, saturated colours, imaginary pictures and tale-like scenes greatly give back the impression of Krúdy’s works.   The vintage mood of the films is not only reflected in the visuals but also in the nostalgic, melancholy nature of the film which features and old man meditating on his life and memories on the brink of death.

            Huszárik’s film is rightly regarded as a masterpiece in Hungarian cinematography. The success and masterly nature of the film are also owing to the cast. The role of Szindbád was cast on iconic actor Zoltán Latinovits, and the main female characters were Éva Ruttkai, Margit Dayka and Anna Nagy. All in all, the film is a treat for the senses with its painterly pictures and its poetic language.