Reds is another movie that received an Oscar for Vittorio Storaro's work, as well as for Warren Beatty's directing. This was an extraordinary feat, especially in the United States, given that Reds chronicles the Great October Socialist Revolution. (In case that still means something to Hungarian citizens today.) But first things first. A bohemian and radical American journalist by the name of John Reed arrived in Europe in 1914 to report on World War I. He also published a book about Eastern Europe at war. Facing censorship, he recognised the senselessness of war and repeatedly served time in prison. In 1917, long before the Revolution, he turned up in Russia and got a genuine first-hand account of the events. Later, this became the basis for his book Ten Days that Shook the World, which provides the background for Reds. (The book used to be promoted by the governments of Hungary and the Soviet Union - after all, Reed is interred in the Kremlin wall.)
However, readers of the book and viewers of the film interpret them differently. Reed was creating a chronicle, not a monument. The incredible imagery of Reds and the maelstrom of the Revolution raise questions about the exact nature of the event - ones that the régime in power at the time would rather suppress. Viewers today have different questions about those ten days that brought about seven decades of global upheaval. What is even more incredible is Vittorio Sotaro's ability to yet again create a visual language completely unique to the film he was working on. His emotionally charged images show the overpowering euphoria of revolution, together with the facelessness of the crowd that it set into motion.

Presented by: Müpa Budapest