HUNGARY 2018

Ferenc Gyurcsány previously served as Prime Minister of Hungary from 2004 to 2009. In 2018, he resolves to throw his hat into the ring for the position once again, with the aim of unseating incumbent Viktor Orbán. This documentary film by Eszter Hajdú chronicles Gyurcsány’s public campaign appearances, while also following the politician in backroom meetings and during various moments in his private life. These scenes are juxtaposed with footage from various campaign events for Orbán’s ruling FIDESZ party, whose operatives use incendiary rhetoric to rally the Hungarian populace to confront the supposed evils lurking beyond the country’s borders, in the form of refugees, the European Union or the alleged secret influence of billionaire George Soros. It is in these moments that the film immerses itself completely in the rawness of the current political era. At the same time, it also manages to evoke memories of the advent of the Direct Cinema movement, alluding to the classic PRIMARY, which documented John F. Kennedy’s 1960 effort to secure the Democratic nomination for president. Though it may be true that Gyurcsány is no luminous figure like JFK and his political past is definitely a matter of contention, his arduous struggle on behalf of liberal values still proves to be moving.