This autobiographical film by director Eva Gardos is about a troubled teen who was reunited with her birth family in the U.S. after spending the first six or so years of her life with a couple in her native Hungary. Her birth parents fled communist persecution in Hungary, but couldn't take the infant out of fear she would cry, and alert the communist authorities. They intended to retrieve her shortly thereafter, but matters were complicated, and she remained. After a few years had gone by and she had grown to love her surrogate parents, the first ones she ever knew, she was taken from them somewhat deceptively by her grandmother. As a teen, she longs to return to her native land to see her surrogate parents, if only for a visit.
The film is touching, both sad and joyous, but I was a little disappointed that there were no references, at least that I caught, of the Hungarian revolt against the Soviets in 1956, one that was brutally crushed by the invading Red Army.
One thing that led me to this movie, which I purchased on DVD, was that I read that Hungarian actress Eva Soreny was in it, albeit very briefly. She's the elderly waitress in the first scene that takes place in America, in L.A. She has quite a story of her own, worthy of a full-length feature film, a story that mirrors The Sound Of Music. She was forced to flee her native land with her family following the 1956 revolt after communist authorities told her of their interest in using her for propaganda purposes, since she was regarded as Hungary's premiere actress of that era. Her story is told in an episode of the 1950s-60s TV series The Armstrong Circle Theater, entitled "The Hunted: The Eva Soreny Story", in which she plays herself. After coming to America, she had a few other acting jobs, mainly guest appearances in TV series. I saw her in The Twilight Zone (episode:Mute) and Family Affair (A Waltz From Vienna). As far as I know, as of this writing, she is still alive at age 90.
The film is touching, both sad and joyous, but I was a little disappointed that there were no references, at least that I caught, of the Hungarian revolt against the Soviets in 1956, one that was brutally crushed by the invading Red Army.
One thing that led me to this movie, which I purchased on DVD, was that I read that Hungarian actress Eva Soreny was in it, albeit very briefly. She's the elderly waitress in the first scene that takes place in America, in L.A. She has quite a story of her own, worthy of a full-length feature film, a story that mirrors The Sound Of Music. She was forced to flee her native land with her family following the 1956 revolt after communist authorities told her of their interest in using her for propaganda purposes, since she was regarded as Hungary's premiere actress of that era. Her story is told in an episode of the 1950s-60s TV series The Armstrong Circle Theater, entitled "The Hunted: The Eva Soreny Story", in which she plays herself. After coming to America, she had a few other acting jobs, mainly guest appearances in TV series. I saw her in The Twilight Zone (episode:Mute) and Family Affair (A Waltz From Vienna). As far as I know, as of this writing, she is still alive at age 90.