Sometimes (rarely) a movie starts on TV which I have no intention of watching, but which I find myself drawn to. I pause and, contrary to intent, keep watching. I was walking past the TV when I saw the opening (title) shot, and I could not help but stop. Slowly, I was drawn in. Of course the cinematography is absolutely gorgeous. But the pace of the film, its view of Nature, and its appreciation of a simple life, are attractive as well. The first twenty minutes or so are truly hypnotic! Just watching the couple and their child walk through the forest is mesmerizing. The latter half of the film, however, I was not that fond of. But then I guess the film needed some dramatic tension.

A hot summer day six young men and two young women meet at the beach beside a deep river. After a while they go for a swim. At a point where the river is 8 meters deep, one of the boys gets the idea of diving to the bottom, and to bring up a handful of clay as a proof of the feat. The others follow his example. Back on dry land one of the girls suddenly wonders where Gabi is. When they figure out that no one has seen him coming up from the river, they get worried. Gabi's clothes are still on the beach, and they start searching for him along the banks and in the water. Finally they have to call the police, who start dragging the river. The corpse isn't found, and the following days Gabi's friends display different reactions to the loss. Some had unsettled matters with him, which now never can be solved. Some have already started to forget his face. At the third day the body is found. Summer is gone, and the circle of friends disbands. Some go to a bigger city for studies, while others ...

In Budapest, two rival gangs of young boys lay claim to a vacant lot. The hostilities escalate yet never quite boil over into actual violence.

1968 film by Miklós Jancsó

After the failure of the Kossuth's revolution of 1848, people suspected of supporting the revolution are sent to prison camps. Years later, partisans led by outlaw Sándor Rózsa still run rampant. Although the authorities do not know the identities of the partisans, they round up suspects and try to root them out by any means necessary.