''Liza, the Fox-Fairy'' () is a 2015 Hungarian

black comedy Black comedy, also known as black humor, bleak comedy, dark comedy, dark humor, gallows humor or morbid humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally ...

film directed by Károly Ujj Mészáros, starring

Mónika Balsai Mónika Balsai (born 13 December 1977 in Vác) is a Hungarian actress. Selected filmography *'' Liza, the Fox-Fairy'' (2015) *'' Kills on Wheels'' (2016) *''Jupiter's Moon ''Jupiter's Moon'' () is a 2017 Hungarian science fiction drama film ...

, Szabolcs Bede-Fazekas and

David Sakurai David Sakurai (Copenhagen, 19 July 1979) is a Danish Japanese actor, director, scriptwriter and martial artist. Biography David Sakurai was born in Copenhagen to a Japanese father and a Danish mother and raised in Frederiksværk, Denmark. He ha ...

. The film drew an audience of over 100,000 in Hungary. The film's music was elected as one of 2015's "catchiest soundtracks" in Hungary and four songs were recorded on a limited 7-inch

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...

Plot

Liza is a 30-year-old, naïve, lonely nurse living in "Csudapest", the capital of a fictionalized 1970s Hungary with a capitalist system. She has taken care of Márta, the widow of the former Japanese ambassador, for the last 12 years. Taking inspiration from a cheap Japanese romance novel, on her 30th birthday, Liza goes to a Mekk Burger restaurant in hopes of falling in love. While she’s away, Márta is killed by Liza's only friend, Tomy Tani, the ghost of a Japanese pop singer from the 1950s, resulting in Liza inheriting her apartment. Relatives report Liza to the police for murdering Márta. Sergeant Zoltan is put on the case, who gets very nearly killed in the process, and falls slowly in love with Liza after moving into her apartment as a flatmate. She gains confidence, but all her dating efforts end in fatal accidents. Liza is convinced that she has become a fox-fairy, a demon from

Japanese mythology Japanese mythology is a collection of traditional stories, folktales, and beliefs that emerged in the islands of the Japanese archipelago. Shinto traditions are the cornerstones of Japanese mythology. The history of thousands of years of contac ...

. According to the legend, men who fall in love with a fox-fairy die soon afterwards, and the fox-fairy is doomed to be alone forever.

Cast

Szabolcs Bede-Fazekas - by Misi Palotai 5702 EZ

as ''Liza'', the Fox-Fairy *

as ''Tomy Tani'' * Szabolcs Bede-Fazekas as ''Sergeant Zoltán'' *

Piroska Molnár Piroska Molnár (born 1 October 1945) is a Hungarian actress. She has appeared in more than one hundred films since 1967. Selected filmography Theatre References External links * 1945 births Living people Hungarian film actress ...

as ''Márta'', the widow of a Japanese Ambassador to Hungary * Zoltán Schmied as ''Henrik'' * Antal Cserna as ''Károly'' *

Gábor Reviczky Gábor Reviczky (born March 28, 1949, in Tatabánya) is a Hungarian actor. Selected filmography * 1985 ''The Red Countess'' * 1985 ''Mata Hari'' * 1990 '' Good Evening, Mr. Wallenberg'' * 1991 ''Paths of Death and Angels'' * 1992 ''The Summer G ...

as police Colonel * Mariann Kocsis as ''Hildácska'' * Ági Gubík as ''Inge'' * Lehel Kovács as ''Mr. Ludvig'' *

Győző Szabó Győző Szabó (born 7 July 1970) is a Hungarian actor. He appeared in more than sixty films since 1994. Selected filmography References External links * 1970 births Living people Hungarian male film actors {{Hungary-actor-s ...

: ''Mr B.'', or Jonny * János Bán as ''Heartbreak'' * István Hajdu as ''Ferenc'', a manager * László Nádasi as ''staff sergeant'' * Sándor Szűcs as ''police doctor'' * Nóra Diána Takács as ''Police Secretary'' * Dezső Rancsó as ''chimney sweeper'' * Vali Dániel as ''Teri'' * Zsuzsa Töreky as ''Edit'' * Mária Bókay as ''Vilma'' * István Gőz as ''Dr. Keserű'' * Kata Bartsch as ''Kriszta'' * Klára Jarábik as ''Orsi'' * Rodrigo Crespo as ''Orsi's husband'' * Batjav Batod as ''Eskimo'' * Zoltán Karácsonyi as ''Teleshop Giovanni'' * Katalin Kiss Horváth as ''Johnny's daughter'' * Orsolya Mihály as ''Mekk Burger's salesgirl'' * Andrea Balázs as ''sick-nurse'' * Katalin Ben as ''Malvinka'' * Kata Losonczi as ''Timi'' * Gyöngy Bérces as ''Cosmo cover girl'' *

Gábor Harsányi Gábor Harsányi (born 15 June 1945) is a Hungarian actor. In 2009, he was chosen the "Outstanding Lead Actor" at the Midtown International Theatre Festival in New York. Roles *''Kabarémúzeum'' (2006) – film *''South Park'' (2000–prese ...

as Narrator (voice)

Production

The film is based on the play ''Liselotte és a május'' by Zsolt Pozsgai. The Japanese theme was added by Károly Ujj Mészáros, who was fascinated by Japanese culture, especially pop music from the 1960s and 1970s. He was also attracted by similarities between Japanese and Hungarian traditions. He had directed several commercials in Japan, which gave him further familiarity with Japanese culture. The film was produced by Filmteam with co-production support from Origo Film Group. The budget was 420 million

forint The forint (, sign Ft; code HUF) is the currency of Hungary. It was formerly divided into 100 fillér, but fillér coins are no longer in circulation. The introduction of the forint on 1 August 1946 was a crucial step in the post-World War II sta ...

(~1.6 million USD), of which 220 million came from the Hungarian National Film Fund. The cast rehearsed for a month before filming started.

Release

The film was released theatrically in Hungary on 19 February 2015. It was also screened at various film like

Fantasporto Fantasporto International Film Festival (Portuguese: Festival Internacional de Cinema do Porto) is an international genre film festival, annually organized since 1981 in Porto, Portugal. Screening and awarding fantasy, sci-fi and horror orient ...

Film Festival in Portugal) on 2 March 2015 and Seattle International Film Festival (USA) on 25 May 2015.

Awards

* 31st

Imagine Film Festival The Imagine Film Festival, formerly Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival, also known as Imagine Fantastic Film Festival or simply Imagine, is an annual film festival in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The festival was created in 1991 with a focus mainly on ...

:- ''Silver Scream Award'', Méliès d’Argent for the best European fantastic film :: nominated for Golden Méliès :- The audiences top-3 of the festival * 33rd

Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival The Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF), previously named Brussels International Festival of Fantastic Film (, ) was created in 1983 as a venue for horror, thriller and science fiction films. It takes place in Brussels, eve ...

(BIFFF) :- ''7th Orbit Award'' for Best Film (haven’t already been presented at Brussels and have been produced in the last two years, attributed by a national jury of professionals) :- The ''Pegasus Award, Prize of the Audience'' * Nocturna 2015 -

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

International Fantastic Film Festival :- "

Paul Naschy Jacinto Molina Álvarez (September 6, 1934 – November 30, 2009) known by his stage name Paul Naschy, was a Spanish film actor, screenwriter, and director working primarily in horror films. His portrayals of numerous classic horror figures&md ...

" Award(Best Film) :- Best Director :- Best Play: Actor (Szabolcs Bede-Fazekas) and Actress (Mónika Balsai) :- Best Screenplay :- Best Special Effects *

Fantaspoa Fantaspoa is an international film festival held annually in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Established in 2005, it focuses on genre cinema, including fantasy, science fiction and horror, and showcases both feature-length and short films, with a focus o ...

- XI. International Fantastic Film Festival of

Porto Alegre Porto Alegre (, ; , ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian Federative units of Brazil, state of Rio Grande do Sul. Its population of roughly 1.4 million inhabitants (2022) makes it the List of largest cities in Brazil, 11th-most p ...

:- Best Actress (Mónika Balsai) *41st

Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) is a film festival held annually in Seattle, Washington, United States, since 1976. It usually takes place in late May and/or early June. It is one of the largest festivals in the world, and feature ...

:- Grand Jury Prize, New Directors Competition (Károly Ujj Mészáros) *8th CinEmaCity International Film Festival -

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

and the region :- Cineuropa Prize, which singles out the best international film hailing from the Danube countries * 10th

Fantastic Fest Fantastic Fest is an annual film festival in Austin, Texas, focused on fantasy, horror, sci-fi, action and cult films, the largest genre festival in the United States. It was founded in 2005 by Tim League of Alamo Drafthouse. Lisa Dreyer ...

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

:- Audience award 2nd Place * 21st

Lund International Fantastic Film Festival The Lund International Fantastic Film Festival (, abbreviated FFF or LIFFF) is a popular film festival in Lund in southern Sweden that mainly shows fantasy, science fiction and horror films. LIFFF is the largest fantastic/ genre film festival i ...

−

Lund Lund (, ;"Lund"
(US) and ) is a city in the provinces of Sweden, province of Scania, southern Swed ...

:- ''Siren Award'' for best international film, :- ''Audience Award'' for Best Feature * 4th Monsters of Film -

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

: - ''Audience Award'' for Best Feature * 3rd Cellar Door Film Festival -

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

:- ''Audience Award'' for Best Feature * 15th Hungarian Film Festival of

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

:- ''Best Film "Hungarians in Hollywood" Award'': Károly Ujj Mészáros :- ''Best Actress Award'' jury prize: Mónika Balsai * 29th

Leeds International Film Festival The Leeds International Film Festival (LIFF) is an annual film festival hosted in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest film festival in England outside of London. Founded in 1987, it is held in November in various venues throughou ...

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

:- ''Audience Award for New Narrative Feature'' * 17th European Film Festival in

Essonne Essonne () is a department in the southern part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. It is named after the river Essonne. In 2019, it had a population of 1,301,659, across 194 communes.Ris-Orangis Ris-Orangis () is a Communes of France, commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Inhabitants of Ris-Orangis are known as ''Rissois''. History The commune of Ris-Orangis was creat ...

:- ''Grand Prix'' (2015) * 54th Hungarian Film Critics Award -

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

:- ''Best First Film'' of 2015 (Károly Ujj Mészáros)

Adaptation

An Indian adaptation of the film, titled '' Aafat-E-Ishq'', was released on October 29, 2021.

Notes

References

External links

Cannes 2013 International Village Hungarian pavilion 106
2012 Liza, the Fox-Fairy synopsis p. 1, Hungarian National Film Fund
Catalogue 2015
Liza, the Fox-Fairy synopsis p. 5, Hungarian National Film Fund *{{IMDb title, 2210769 2015 romantic comedy-drama films 2015 films 2015 black comedy films Films based on Japanese myths and legends Films set in the 1970s Films set in Hungary 2010s ghost films 2010s Hungarian-language films 2010s fantasy comedy-drama films Hungarian fantasy films Hungarian romantic comedy-drama films