'Szabadsag Szerelem' sets an old theme in an original setting: a love caught in the fire of revolution, against a ... water-polo scenery.
Truly original is the serious dealing with some ethics of sports. This film confronts us with questions like 'am I serving my country better by participating in the revolution, or by winning a gold medal at the Olympic games?' Or: 'am I a traitor to my team when I stay in Budapest to fight the Russians?'. Another one: 'do I have a moral obligation to those team-mates for whom water-polo is all they have?'.
Apart from this, 'Szabadsag Szerelem' reminds me of the famous 'Dr. Zhivago' from the mid-Sixties. However, I guess this is easy to say for someone without any emotional ties with Hungary. For those who have, I gather that watching this film still can evoke pretty strong emotions.
Truly original is the serious dealing with some ethics of sports. This film confronts us with questions like 'am I serving my country better by participating in the revolution, or by winning a gold medal at the Olympic games?' Or: 'am I a traitor to my team when I stay in Budapest to fight the Russians?'. Another one: 'do I have a moral obligation to those team-mates for whom water-polo is all they have?'.
Apart from this, 'Szabadsag Szerelem' reminds me of the famous 'Dr. Zhivago' from the mid-Sixties. However, I guess this is easy to say for someone without any emotional ties with Hungary. For those who have, I gather that watching this film still can evoke pretty strong emotions.