FEHÉR ISTEN

Hungary, Sweden, Germany

Synopsis

Kornel Mundruczó’s sixth feature film tells the tale of the eternal friendship of a girl and a dog in a world in which heavy tolls are cast on some and gains on others - where ancestry becomes a matter of life or death again.
A new law in Hungary announces that every dog owner has to pay taxes unless they own original Hungarian breeds. Hundreds of dogs are thrown to the streets straight away.
After her father decides to get rid of her dog Hagen, 13-year-old Lili suffers both from shame and despair.
On the streets Hagen is handed from owner to owner and gets into wild adventures. Finally he learns that people are not dogs’ best friends. Together with other stray dogs he decides to turn against the city and hunt down people who did not have mercy on them.
In the meantime Lili is also looking for him. But as time flies, the distance grows. Lili joins a gang of adolescents and she truly believes that she will never see Hagen again.
When the dogs, hungry for revenge, appear at the border of the city, Lili knows what to do. She is the only one who can stop the war.

Director's Statement

The film can be described by the words of adventure, revenge, revolt, and heroism. My purpose is that we should keep our fingers crossed both for Hagen and for Lili. We should want Hagen to revolt and Lili to understand that Hagen’s revolt is right and proper. This way we, too, can enjoy some kind of purification and can believe that there is a chance of making a different decision, of not becoming immoral adults.
 | 

Cast & Crew

Directed by: Kornél Mundruczó

Written by: Kornél Mundruczó, Viktória Petrányi, Kata Wéber

Produced by: Viktória Petrányi

Cinematography: Marcell Rév

Editing: Dávid Jancsó

Production Design: Márton Ágh

Costume Design: Sabine Greunig

Original Score: Asher Goldschmidt

Sound: Gábor Balázs, Thomas Huhn

Cast: Sandór Zsótér, Szabolcs Thuróczy, Zsófia Psotta

Nominations and Awards

  • People's Choice Award 2015
  • Feature Film Selection 2014