Egy Nap (One Day), a 2018 film by the Hungarian director Zsófia Szilágyi, takes the audience through just over a 24 hour period of the daily life of a Budapest mother. The film follows Anna, the mother, go through the trials of marriage, motherhood, and work. Easily critiqued as too monotonous, the film on the surface can seem drab. However, the use of neutrality and hyperrealism brings more to the table, allowing the audience the chance to think. Overall, the film does a phenomenal job of representing the struggle of real, daily life. However, not all people want to be reminded of this and thus is not for everyone.
Immediately, the film did a very good job at making the main characters relatable. Perfectly portraying the mother so as not to demonize her as a parent but not so perfect she is not relatable; the audience is able to easy connect with the character. Through witnessing her struggle through daily tasks, such as simply trying to remind her son Simon to bring home his gym clothes, everyone can relate and empathize as either they have been the ones who forgot or the one who was having to nag. Seeing her go to work after finding out her house might foreclose in 15 days and her husband cheated on her immediately puts the audience on her side, solidifying her presence as one of silent strength. Szilágyi has Anna continue on with her life despite the constant hurtles thrown into her path, creating a theme of resiliency.
The use of neutrality within the film allows the audience to truly think about the film they are watching. Rather than tell the audience a message, Szilágyi leaves it up to them to decide several things. The first instance of neutrality seen is the husband, where Szilágyi plays with the audience’s need for cause and effect. Often in films the “bad guy” sets in motion a problem for the main character to overcome. In the traditional sense the husband would be this bad guy. However, Szilágyi does not portray him as such. No one is demonized. Even when the husband refuses to say he loves his wife, it does not feel as though we are supposed to hate him. Rather, the audience sees him as weak and perhaps not knowing what he wants. This is reflective of real life struggles of marriage and the gray areas that exist. It is not so easy to decide to hate someone after having three kids and a life together. It seems as though Szilágyi wants to remind the audience of that.
The next use of neutrality is the lack of dialogue with the mother. There are numerous scenes where she says little to no words, and yet the world goes on without her. This adds to the audience’s experience of truly feeling like they are living right alongside Anna. This use of hyperrealism allows Anna’s character to appear much stronger than perhaps without it. She continues to problem solve and go about her day, arguably less affected by her surroundings than what the audience would expect. There are numerous times the audience feels sympathy for Anna’s situation, but Szilágyi does not have Anna portray a demeanor that desires that within the hyper-realistic scenes. Szilágyi is not asking for sympathy regarding Anna’s struggles, but rather acknowledgment.
The final scene of the film leaves many questions. Open for interpretation, it is unclear whether the director intended the scene to be filmed as the mother giving up, or simply taking a rest. As she crawls under the table, the immediate reaction from the audience is to empathize. Most members of the audience probably would do the same. Because of the way the mother handles her issues throughout the film, the audience could have faith that she will continue and she simply needs a break. The other half could believe that the strain of life was too much for her and she finally broke. Regardless of the interpretation, this scene is the first time in the whole film we see a break in the façade of perfect motherhood and the mother takes a moment for herself. Through doing so, Szilágyi humanizes her. It reminds the audience that you cannot keep going forever.
The film leaves the audience questioning their own life and the mother figures around them. Perhaps they will be a little nicer to their teacher or their mother, or perhaps none of the above. It can remind the audience of all the things people can have going on in their life that they never see. On the other hand, some may simply find this film lacking a proper conclusion. If the audience is not in the mood to think, it is not for them. This film is for those who are prepared to reflect and empathize about the beautiful struggle that is life.
by Margot Behrens
- Egy nap/One Day, 2018, 95 mins.
- dir.: Zsófia Szilágyi, screenplay: Zsófia Szilágyi and Réka Mán-Várhegyi, actors: Zsófia Szamosi, Leó Füredi
- Egy nap Kft., Partnersfilm Kft.
Budapest through Streets, People and Cinema 