Director: Krisztina Goda, Screenplay: Réka Divinyi, Producer: Tamás Lajos, Production Company: Film Positive Productions, Hungary, 88’, 2022 Rights: World (Except Hungary)
A turn-of-the-century romance story based on Géza Gárdonyi’s novel from 1899 of the same name. Her father finds a husband for the nineteen-year-old Ida through a want ad, but can the contractual marriage turn into love?
In the early 1920s, Ida Ó, an eighteen-year-old girl who has been raised by nuns, goes home to her father’s house. Péter Ó is not happy to see his daughter, however, because he is about to get married, so he aims to marry Ida off as soon as possible. He places a want ad, alluring potential suitors with the promise of a big dowry. A young painter, Csaba Balogh applies to the ad, trying to save his family’s estate with the dowry. The young couple gets married by necessity, but they are unable to keep their dislike for each other a secret. Ida despises Csaba for marrying for money, while thinking he is in love with someone else, Csaba thinks his wife cannot be an honourable woman if she has to be married off by way of an ad. In spite of this, their forced cohabitation brings the newlyweds closer together. First, they learn to accept, then to respect each other, and their love slowly starts to bloom.
Directors Bio
Born 1968, Budapest. Writer and director, known for Chameleon (2008), Just Sex and Nothing Else (2005), and Home Guards (2015).
She has been recognized internationally, including being nominated in the New Directors Competition at the 2006 Chicago International Film Festival with her film Just Sex and Nothing More (2005).
Her film Children of Glory (2006) won the Best International Feature Film Audience Choice Award at the 2008 St. Louis International Film Festival. She directed Home Guards (2015), which won the Grand Prize at the Paris Festival International du Film d’environnement in 2016.
CAST
Ida Ó -Júlia Virginia Mentes
Csaba Balogh – Barnabás Rohonyi
Csorba -Márk Ember
Mrs. Mikey/Flóra – Éva Bata
FESTIVALS
Hungarian Motion Picture Festival (Magyar Mozgókép Fesztivál)
Nominations: Best TV Film, Best Actress (Júlia Virginia Mentes), Best Music (Dániel Csengery) categories
61st Monte-Carlo Television Festival Official Selection
Golden Nymph Awards nomination in the Best Television Film category