''Keep Quiet'' is a 2016 biographical documentary film about Hungarian politician

Csanád Szegedi Csanád Szegedi (; born 22 September 1982) is a Hungarian politician and former Member of the European Parliament. He was a member of the Hungarian radical nationalist Jobbik political party between 2003 and 2012, which at the time had been accus ...

, known for his

anti-semitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

comments and membership in the radical nationalist party

Jobbik The Movement for a Better Hungary ( hu, Jobbik Magyarországért Mozgalom), commonly known as Jobbik (), is a conservative political party in Hungary. Originating with radical and nationalist roots, at its beginnings, the party described itself ...

, who later discovered he was

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

. The British-made film includes interviews with Szegedi, his grandmother who was a former

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It con ...

survivor and archive footage. On 14 April 2016 the film premiered at the

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...

in the World Documentary Competition.

Synopsis

Csanád Szegedi was a member of the Hungarian radical nationalist Jobbik party, who espoused anti-semitic rhetoric. He was a founder of the

Magyar Gárda Magyar Gárda Mozgalom (English: ''Hungarian Guard Movement'') founded by Magyar Gárda Hagyományőrző és Kulturális Egyesület (English: ''Hungarian Guard Association for Preservation of Traditions and Culture'') was a patriotic-nationalist ...

(Hungarian Guard), a now-banned paramilitary wing of Jobbik. Then came a revelation which changed his life: Szegedi's maternal grandparents were Jewish and his grandmother a survivor of

who, fearing further persecution, had hidden her religious background. The film follows Szegedi's on his three-year journey to embrace Judaism, forced to confront his family's past, his wrongdoing, and his country's turbulent history. But is this change a genuine process of reparation and spiritual awakening, or is he a desperate man with nowhere to turn?

Reception

The film received positive reviews from critics.

Frank Scheck Frank Scheck is an American film critic. He is best known for his reviews in the ''New York Post'' and ''The Hollywood Reporter''. He formerly edited ''STAGES Magazine'' and worked as a theater critic for the ''Christian Science Monitor Ch ...

from ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' wrote, "Be prepared to talk about it after," and called the film " namazing story... Should provoke strong controversy upon its theatrical release. It's fascinating throughout." Daniel Walber from NonFics called the film " powerful narrative of repentance." ''Keep Quiet'' was featured in "The 10 Best Movies at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival" in ''Time Out New York''. "If you want a controversial fest title, this is it." ''Jewish Week'' commented: "A superb piece of nonfiction filmmaking, telling a story of import with grace and intelligence." ''Slant Magazine'' wrote, "The filmmakers astutely reveal how a culture can eat another alive and somehow live with itself."

References

External links

* * 2016 films 2016 documentary films Documentary films about Jews and Judaism Documentary films about antisemitism Orthodox Judaism in Hungary Jobbik {{reli-documentary-film-stub