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Special Features
- "The Making of Fateless featurette
- Interview with Nobel Prize winning author Imre Kertész
- Original trailer
- Trailer Gallery
Editorial Reviews
From the Contributor
Directed By LAJOS KOLTAI Academy Award ® Nominee (Just Cause, Home for the Holidays, Mother, Out to Sea)
Screenplay Adaptation By Nobel Prize-Winner IMRE KERTÉSZ From His Celebrated First Novel
Original Score By ENNIO MORRICONE 5 Time Academy Award ® Nominee
Screenplay Adaptation By Nobel Prize-Winner IMRE KERTÉSZ From His Celebrated First Novel
Original Score By ENNIO MORRICONE 5 Time Academy Award ® Nominee
Product Description
Don’t miss this unforgettable story of a child who had the courage to come home.
Set in 1944, as Hitler’s Final Solution becomes policy throughout Europe, Fateless is the semi-autobiographical tale of a 14 year-old Jewish boy from Budapest, who finds himself swept up by cataclysmic events beyond his comprehension. A perfectly normal metropolitan teen who has never felt particularly connected to his religion, he is suddenly separated from his family as part of the rushed and random deportation of his city’s large Jewish population. Brought to a concentration camp, his existence becomes a surreal adventure in adversity and adaptation, and he is never quite sure if he is the victim of his captors, or of an absurd destiny that metes out salvation and suffering arbitrarily. When he returns home after the liberation, he missed the sense of community he experienced in the camps, feeling alienated from both his Christian neighbors who turned a blind eye to his fate, and the Jewish family friends who avoided deportation and who now want to put the war behind them.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
35 of 35 people found the following review helpful
By J. Guzman
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Watching a film depicting the dehumanizing harshness and brutality of a concentration camp, viewers likely do not expect to find beauty. I have watched this film twice now, and it is its beauty, not its grim, often bleak story line, that seems to have made its first...and lasting...impression on me.
The director and cinematographer chose to film Fateless not in black and white, as Schindler's List was done, but in almost colorless tones washed over with sepia and grey, which give the film the appearance of very early photography, the kind your grandparents and great grandparents might have appeared in. And, just when you think you're watching a black and white film, small hints of real color appear, almost the way real colors sometimes show briefly in departing dreams. The film is an impeccably crafted work of visual art, and it is its imagery that most moved me.
There are three moments of unexpected beauty that for me were most memorable. The first is a sequence showing prisoners forced to stand at attention, knowing that should they fall they will be punished or put to death. Dressed in their striped uniforms and standing in lines, as the impact of the fear drains their weakened bodies, they begin to shake and to sway. And, the movement is accompanied by the mournful singing of what could be a hymn, richly done by a single female voice. As the camera pans over them, it is almost as though they are one with the music, and the effect is gut-wrenching.
The second is a sequence in which the boy makes his way through a downpour in the mud toward a goal which remains ambiguous. As he slips and slides and falls, silhoutted against the falling rain, we no longer see the child he was but simply a human being reduced to the barest of necessities, the need to fight to remain alive. Filmed in black and grey, it is among the film's most powerful symbolic moments.
And, finally, a scene in which the barely living boy is laid out among corpses on the threshold of his own death. As he lies there, we see what he sees: a sky filled with flowing clouds that intermittently allow weak rays of sunlight to filter through them. It is a deeply personal, yet universal statement: the few seconds of time most of us will have as we look at our living world for the last time. Almost incongruously, the moment becomes the beginning of his salvation.
I am sure other viewers of Fateless will take from it parts of the film that they will treasure. These three were among mine. I intend to watch this film many more times. It is a beautifully rendered work of art.
The director and cinematographer chose to film Fateless not in black and white, as Schindler's List was done, but in almost colorless tones washed over with sepia and grey, which give the film the appearance of very early photography, the kind your grandparents and great grandparents might have appeared in. And, just when you think you're watching a black and white film, small hints of real color appear, almost the way real colors sometimes show briefly in departing dreams. The film is an impeccably crafted work of visual art, and it is its imagery that most moved me.
There are three moments of unexpected beauty that for me were most memorable. The first is a sequence showing prisoners forced to stand at attention, knowing that should they fall they will be punished or put to death. Dressed in their striped uniforms and standing in lines, as the impact of the fear drains their weakened bodies, they begin to shake and to sway. And, the movement is accompanied by the mournful singing of what could be a hymn, richly done by a single female voice. As the camera pans over them, it is almost as though they are one with the music, and the effect is gut-wrenching.
The second is a sequence in which the boy makes his way through a downpour in the mud toward a goal which remains ambiguous. As he slips and slides and falls, silhoutted against the falling rain, we no longer see the child he was but simply a human being reduced to the barest of necessities, the need to fight to remain alive. Filmed in black and grey, it is among the film's most powerful symbolic moments.
And, finally, a scene in which the barely living boy is laid out among corpses on the threshold of his own death. As he lies there, we see what he sees: a sky filled with flowing clouds that intermittently allow weak rays of sunlight to filter through them. It is a deeply personal, yet universal statement: the few seconds of time most of us will have as we look at our living world for the last time. Almost incongruously, the moment becomes the beginning of his salvation.
I am sure other viewers of Fateless will take from it parts of the film that they will treasure. These three were among mine. I intend to watch this film many more times. It is a beautifully rendered work of art.
30 of 32 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I recall reading Victor Frankl's MAN'S SEARCH FOR MEANING in college. If I'm not mistaken, I believe I read it for a number of different courses. It seemed to be required in history classes, philosophy and theology classes, and even an introductory class in psychology. Frankl's belief that the human spirit can triumph over the most overwhelming odds is a modern classic. As I watched FATELESS, I was reminded of this book, especially when an older prisoner took an interest in the young Gyorgy Koves (played by Marcell Nagy), the film's main character. Yet while the triumph of the human spirit over adversity can be found in this film, it's hardly a feel good flick. If anything, it's one of those films that will haunt and challenge viewers long after watching it.
The film itself is based on Irme Kertesz's novel which tells the story of a community of Hungarian Jews near the end of World War II. In scenes that would be familiar to those who have read Elie Wiesel's NIGHT, the Jews of Budapest believed they'd be spared, or at least would not face the horrors that those who went to the camps earlier had to endure. Many discovered that this was hardly the case as people from Budapest began to be deported. We see the horrors of the camps as one would expect from such a film. We see the ways in which many prisoners took advantage of the situation while others tried to do their best to make sure as many people as possible survived. The camp is finally liberated and against the advice of the American liberators, Gyorgy returns home and it is then that we see how much the war and suffering changed this once effervescent young teen into someone who knew the truth about life.
There are a number of reasons this film has such power. It has a strong story, it is filmed in a way that is appropriate for what is taking place, and a moving musical score by composer Ennio Morricone. While all these strengths make for a wonderful film, the point of view is perhaps the strongest element. We always see the action through the eyes of the young Gyorgy, and Marcell Nagy is such a gifted young actor, we feel as if we're moving through the film with him.
FATELESS was not widely screened which is unfortunate. People missed the opportunity to see a powerful film on a wide screen where it has its full impact. Its release on DVD will ensure that many others will see it, and no doubt it will be counted among the most compelling accounts of the Holocaust in cinema.
The film itself is based on Irme Kertesz's novel which tells the story of a community of Hungarian Jews near the end of World War II. In scenes that would be familiar to those who have read Elie Wiesel's NIGHT, the Jews of Budapest believed they'd be spared, or at least would not face the horrors that those who went to the camps earlier had to endure. Many discovered that this was hardly the case as people from Budapest began to be deported. We see the horrors of the camps as one would expect from such a film. We see the ways in which many prisoners took advantage of the situation while others tried to do their best to make sure as many people as possible survived. The camp is finally liberated and against the advice of the American liberators, Gyorgy returns home and it is then that we see how much the war and suffering changed this once effervescent young teen into someone who knew the truth about life.
There are a number of reasons this film has such power. It has a strong story, it is filmed in a way that is appropriate for what is taking place, and a moving musical score by composer Ennio Morricone. While all these strengths make for a wonderful film, the point of view is perhaps the strongest element. We always see the action through the eyes of the young Gyorgy, and Marcell Nagy is such a gifted young actor, we feel as if we're moving through the film with him.
FATELESS was not widely screened which is unfortunate. People missed the opportunity to see a powerful film on a wide screen where it has its full impact. Its release on DVD will ensure that many others will see it, and no doubt it will be counted among the most compelling accounts of the Holocaust in cinema.
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
'Sorstalansag' (FATELESS) is an inordinately powerful, quiet journey through a year in Nazi Concentration Camps at Auschwitz, Buchenwald, and Zeitz. Adapted by Imre Kertesz from his first novel, the story is semi-autobiographical as Kertesz spent a year of his youth in Auschwitz as a Hungarian Jew. Though Kertesz alters his novel of the life of one Gyorgy Koves, in a manner he carefully explains in one of the featurettes accompanying this DVD, the observational skills and tenor of his literate mind suffuse this surprisingly quiet depiction of life in a death camp.
We first meet Gyorgy Koves as a curly headed handsome 14-year old youth in 1944 bidding farewell to his beloved father as he departs for a labor camp. Wearing the yellow star of David proudly, Gyorgy has little understanding of what it is to be a Jew, a lesson he will learn in the coming year and affect his perception of the world and his place in it. Gyorgy's mother left his father and his father has remarried and requests that Gyorgy stay with his stepmother while he is away 'for a while' in the labor camp. Gyorgy is conflicted as he loves his mother but he does as his father requests. Almost inadvertently Gyorgy and his friends are taken off a bus and separated by the Nazis into trains bound for concentration camps. Gyorgy remains relatively naive about what is happening: his head is shaved, his worldly goods are absconded, and he begins the hellish life of survival in Auschwitz. Where Kertesz writes differently than other authors who have described Holocaust conditions is in his mindset of Gyorgy: Gyorgy strives to retain a sense of equilibrium in this bizarre new life, seeing certain events as probable errors, mistakes, or simply 'the way things are'. He endures starvation, brutal work, pain from an injured and infected knee, boredom, and observing sights of torture of his fellow prisoners. Though he is walking in a stunned world, he is still able to fine the little moments of 'happiness' because of his youthful outlook and creative mind. He gradually grows to understand what being a Jew means, and while he is unable to fathom all he sees in captivity, he learns that if he can't understand life in a concentration camp, how can he understand life outside either. Gyorgy is literally on the carts moving toward the crematorium when the Allies free the camp. He meets an American (Daniel Craig) who suggests he not return to Budapest, but go to America instead where he can pursue a new existence. Yet Gyorgy's devotion to family, to country, and to being a Jew returns him to Budapest where he finds a destroyed city that had been home and wanders the town square trying to make sense of it all.
As Gyorgy Koves, Marcell Nagy gives a stunning performance, a picture of a child/man who is forced to enter the world of adulthood via the horrors of Auschwitz. Nagy captures the essence of the character with minimal dialogue and maximum use of his body language and eyes. The supporting cast is superb, each creating vignettes in the few moments we see them that burn into our memory. The cinematography by Gyula Pados uses subdued color for the scenes outside the camps and a subtle sepia toned black and white or the scenes within the walls of the terrifyingly real buildings and yards of the camps. The musical score by Ennio Morricone sustains the mood throughout. But it is the director Lajos Koltai whose impeccable sensitivity to Kertesz' writing and vision that makes this long (140 minutes) film a seamless pondering of the passage of time - minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day, etc - that is the essence of Gyorgy's survival of a nightmare 'with little moments of happiness wherever they may happen'. This is a magnificent film, by a gifted crew, and though it contains visuals that will crush your heart, it must be seen to be believed. In Hungarian and German and English with subtitles. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, June 06
We first meet Gyorgy Koves as a curly headed handsome 14-year old youth in 1944 bidding farewell to his beloved father as he departs for a labor camp. Wearing the yellow star of David proudly, Gyorgy has little understanding of what it is to be a Jew, a lesson he will learn in the coming year and affect his perception of the world and his place in it. Gyorgy's mother left his father and his father has remarried and requests that Gyorgy stay with his stepmother while he is away 'for a while' in the labor camp. Gyorgy is conflicted as he loves his mother but he does as his father requests. Almost inadvertently Gyorgy and his friends are taken off a bus and separated by the Nazis into trains bound for concentration camps. Gyorgy remains relatively naive about what is happening: his head is shaved, his worldly goods are absconded, and he begins the hellish life of survival in Auschwitz. Where Kertesz writes differently than other authors who have described Holocaust conditions is in his mindset of Gyorgy: Gyorgy strives to retain a sense of equilibrium in this bizarre new life, seeing certain events as probable errors, mistakes, or simply 'the way things are'. He endures starvation, brutal work, pain from an injured and infected knee, boredom, and observing sights of torture of his fellow prisoners. Though he is walking in a stunned world, he is still able to fine the little moments of 'happiness' because of his youthful outlook and creative mind. He gradually grows to understand what being a Jew means, and while he is unable to fathom all he sees in captivity, he learns that if he can't understand life in a concentration camp, how can he understand life outside either. Gyorgy is literally on the carts moving toward the crematorium when the Allies free the camp. He meets an American (Daniel Craig) who suggests he not return to Budapest, but go to America instead where he can pursue a new existence. Yet Gyorgy's devotion to family, to country, and to being a Jew returns him to Budapest where he finds a destroyed city that had been home and wanders the town square trying to make sense of it all.
As Gyorgy Koves, Marcell Nagy gives a stunning performance, a picture of a child/man who is forced to enter the world of adulthood via the horrors of Auschwitz. Nagy captures the essence of the character with minimal dialogue and maximum use of his body language and eyes. The supporting cast is superb, each creating vignettes in the few moments we see them that burn into our memory. The cinematography by Gyula Pados uses subdued color for the scenes outside the camps and a subtle sepia toned black and white or the scenes within the walls of the terrifyingly real buildings and yards of the camps. The musical score by Ennio Morricone sustains the mood throughout. But it is the director Lajos Koltai whose impeccable sensitivity to Kertesz' writing and vision that makes this long (140 minutes) film a seamless pondering of the passage of time - minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day, etc - that is the essence of Gyorgy's survival of a nightmare 'with little moments of happiness wherever they may happen'. This is a magnificent film, by a gifted crew, and though it contains visuals that will crush your heart, it must be seen to be believed. In Hungarian and German and English with subtitles. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, June 06
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dark but excellent movie
Another movie about the Holocaust, and very well done. I tend to forget that Hitler invaded many countries and took the Jewish people from them. This one was Hungary.
Published 2 months ago by Leslie
4.0 out of 5 stars
Everything as expected
There was no trouble with the purchase. The item arrived on time, and in the expected condition. All in all, everything we smoothly.
Published 16 months ago by doleful.goat
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautifully Horrific
This is one of the truest and most graphic movies about the Holocaust that I have seen. Beautifully Horrific, Loved it.
Published 20 months ago by Veronica Mariano
4.0 out of 5 stars
Suffering In Silence
How does a 14-year old jewish boy survive the holocaust? Silently! This movie utilizes silence and a deathly blank stare like a sickle chopping down fresh wheat. Read more
Published 21 months ago by W. Powell
5.0 out of 5 stars
Harrowing account of a Hungarian Jewish boy's Holocaust experience
This is one of those rare movies that stay with you long after you view it. It tells the story of a young Hungarian Jew who gets sent off to the camps during the Holocaust, and his... Read more
Published on January 24, 2011 by Z Hayes
5.0 out of 5 stars
powerful questions
Throughout the movie the scenes evoke helplessness. The characters cannot find answers or answer questions; they fade out to another scene. Read more
Published on May 29, 2010 by Peter Andronas
3.0 out of 5 stars
SUBTITLES!
Guess I didn't pay close enough attention to the product description. Don't recall seeing that the film was in Hungarian with English subtitles. Read more
Published on January 12, 2010 by Ivanho
3.0 out of 5 stars
Average
I'm not so sure this was a movie that deserves 5 stars. I find the Pianist much more deserving. Either way, the movie was OK but I guess for Hungarian cinema it's the best thing... Read more
Published on October 22, 2009 by remadrid17
4.0 out of 5 stars
Psycological Interesting.
If you are looking for movies with explicit content abouth the WWII or the Holocaust this in not your movie. Read more
Published on October 13, 2008 by Abner Ramos Delgado
5.0 out of 5 stars
On Par with Schindler's List
I would like to spend a few lines comparing Fateless to Schindler's List, but not until I describe Fateless first. Read more
Published on February 9, 2008 by I. Jaime
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