An American Rhapsody
Reviewed by Gordon Kearns
Rhapsody: "A composition that is free or irregular in form,
is often improvisatory in character, and typically has a melodic content based on folk
tunes."*
What difference did it make that I lived?
Nature, culture, religion would have our existence in the universe as of no more value than a worker ant or drone bee, who has his/her programmed duties to perform, and whose highest achievement can only be the devoted acceptance and performance of those duties. Everybody and everything has its purpose, as we are to understand. Art steps away from that lofty concept. The artist creates something other than their assigned purposes from aspects of the world in which she is placed; and in so doing creates for herself something other than her assigned purpose. To her, this gives both the world and herself value. In the movie An American Rhapsody director/writer Eva Gardos has taken this concept one step further: she has created a work of art that itself steps away from what works of art are supposed to be, and in so doing has given it a value even beyond what art assigns itself.
In An American Rhapsody" there is no apparent climax (as critics seem eager to point out). I suppose Suzanne is the defined protagonist - the story is autobiographical, and told from Suzanne's point of view. But each of the other characters could justifiably claim that nebulous title. Certainly, while there are many conflicts and powerful dramatic moments, and while, sadly, Suzanne must make a choice, there is no wrong, anti-protagonist option. Each opposing choice is as right or wrong as the other. So in the end there is no emotional moment of truth that proclaims itself. Her decision is uncomplicated, and stated with a simplicity that defies conventional dramatic practices; one is stunned by how quickly that simple moment of truth passes.
In the period of Hungary's futile battle for independence from the repressive communist yoke, Margit and Peter, along with their young daughter Maria, make their run for freedom. The dangers for their baby, Suzanne, are too great, so the terrible decision is made to leave her behind with her grandmother, who in turn must pass the child over to a good, dependable rural couple - only moments before the grandmother herself is arrested and taken to prison. For five years Suzanne lives an idyllic life with her loving surrogate parents. Finally, Margit and Peter are successful in their never-ending efforts a get their baby back with them in America. At this point, although unrecognized by all concerned, the five year old Suzanne meets her first betrayal. She was told she was going to Budapest to visit her grandmother, only to discover she's being sent to America to visit her real parents. This turns into a second betrayal as she finds out America is to be her permanent home. There are moments of frustrated rebellion for the child, until that poignant scene in the park when her gentle, loving father promises that when she's older if she still wants to, he'll let her visit her other "parents" in Hungary - a promise she'll later call on him to fulfill.
Ten years later, sixteen year old Suzanne still savors her memories of and mementos from that early idyllic life in Hungary. But she is also thoroughly "Americanized." She smokes (heck, back then darn near everybody smoked); she hangs around with the gang; and, reflecting her adolescent hormones, she's got a guy - all normal teenage behaviors that frighten her mother and lead to several typical parent-child arguments (Suzanne rebels by sneaking out through her bedroom window). But the panicked mother takes a major step beyond "typical" - leading to two frightening and memorable scenes . In the first scene, Suzanne wakes up to find that her mother has had bars put on her window - the image of the shocked Suzanne looking out through the bars is emotionally staggering to watch. Her mother has also put a latch on the bedroom door that can only be opened from the outside. Effectively, her mother has made her daughter as much a prisoner in America as she would be in Hungary. And Suzanne strikes out for freedom as dramatically as any freedom fighter. In the second of those memorable scenes, Suzanne finds a rifle and blasts and smashes her way through the door. Then she asks her father to keep his long-ago promise, and he realizes he must give her a chance to revisit her "family" back in Hungary.
Back in Hungary she finds the love between them and her as strong as ever. But life there isn't the same as her memories - and she also is different. And her understanding of her real mother's motivations is changed. So she has that heartrending decision to make between people she loves and people she loves. And it's that decision that slips by without fanfare. Which is as it should be. It fits. Eva Gardos was not giving us a conclusion so revolutionary as to call for heavy dramatic conceits - as some critics would have preferred. Only one factor in the end moved Suzanne, and she spoke it; and that was that.
The ensemble cast was outstanding. Natassja Kinski's complex Margit and Tony Goldwyn's stolid Peter were deeply affecting as Suzanne's American parents, as were Agnes Banfalvy as Suzanne's grandmother, and Zsuzsa Czinkoczi and Balazs Galko as Suzanne's loving Hungarian parents. Scarlett Johansson proved with her sensitive and true-to-life portrayal of Suzanne that her earlier moving reading of Manny in "Manny and Lo" was no accident. Scarlett has also convincingly demonstrated that she is one of today's top motion picture performers. Six year old Kelly Endresz-Banlaki played the conflicted, confused, and betrayed young Suzanne with stunning depth.
Eva Gardos has moved the art of cinema into a new and more profound dimension.
*from: The American Heritage Dictionary New College Edition 1978
or go to
An Explanation; Being Things; Childhood; Heroes; The Inner Spirit;
Elves I Have Known
Other Essays at Large: Movie Classics; Class of the Millennium;
My Book Reviews; My Stories
From Dorothy's Corner: For Dorothy
Comments: GKEARNS@prodigy.net