Cinema
Stars of Eger
Egri csillagok
Zoltán Várkonyi · 1968
Synopsis
As a child, Bornemissza Gergő escapes with little Cecey Éva from the camp of the janissary Jumurdzsák and takes away his amulet ring, which the one-eyed Turk will relentlessly seek. Grown to manhood, Gergely serves Török Bálint, witnesses in 1541 the taking of Buda by ruse, marries Éva and tries in vain to free his master in Istanbul. In 1552, the Ottoman army marches on Eger; Gergely joins the fortress defended by Dobó István, while Jumurdzsák abducts their little Jancsika.
Context
The film adapts the novel by Géza Gárdonyi, already brought to the screen in 1923 by Pál Fejős in a silent version. István Nemeskürty wrote the screenplay. A Hungarian-Bulgarian co-production, it was shot in Hungary and on the Bulgarian coast; a replica of the fortress was built at Pilisborosjenő, near Budapest, and several thousand conscripts of the People's Army played the Ottoman troops. It was released on 19 December 1968, with Imre Sinkovits as Dobó and György Bárdy as Jumurdzsák.
Who it is for
Nearly two and a half hours of historical spectacle, from the siege of Buda to that of Eger; no French release has been located.
Prizes and reception
One of the greatest popular successes of Hungarian cinema, praised for its spectacle, although critics judged that the characters were at times sacrificed.