Cinema
Little Valentino
A kis Valentino
András Jeles · 1979
Synopsis
Sz. László, in his twenties, accompanies the deliveries of a cooperative near Budapest. One day, instead of taking to the post office the fifteen thousand forints entrusted to him, he keeps them and sets off aimlessly to spend them, to taste everything his wage denies him: taxis, cinemas, luxury restaurants. The encounters are placed side by side without following one another, and the freedom he has bought himself does not fill his day.
Context
This is Jeles's first feature film, written with Zsuzsa Tóth and shot in black and white by Sándor Kardos, with non-professional actors, in ordinary places and with dialogue taken from life. The events do not follow from one another: they coexist, and stylised images remind us that the film is a construction. Released on 8 November 1979, it was shown the same year in Venice, in the Officina Veneziana section, and provoked both rejection and enthusiasm.
Who it is for
A film without a plot in the usual sense, which cannot be read with ordinary habits; listed in France under the title Le Petit Valentino.
Prizes and reception
Misunderstood on its release, it was selected in 2000 among the twelve best Hungarian films.