Explanation for Everything is a sharp and multi-layered portrait of a socially divided Hungary. In this award-winning film, director Gábor Reisz tells the story of Ábel, a student struggling with his final exams. The 18-year-old is hopelessly in love with studious Janka, herself enamored with Ábel’s history teacher, who has previously clashed with the boy’s father over his conservative views. When Ábel fails his exams, seemingly due to his nationalist lapel pin, the whole situation risks turning into a political scandal of national dimensions.
The screening was be followed by a discussion with Réka Kinga Papp, a Hungarian journalist, author, and broadcaster specializing in environmental, social, and human rights. She is a former IWM visiting fellow and editor-in-chief of Eurozine, an online magazine and network of European cultural journals. In conversation with IWM Rector Misha Glenny, Papp spoak about Hungary under Viktor Orbán, the effects of authoritarian politics on our societies, and strategies for countering the populist surge.
132 min. Hungarian with English subtitles
A cooperation between Stadtkino and the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM Vienna).
