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IMDbPro

Sunshine

  • 19991999
  • RR
  • 3h 1m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
15K
YOUR RATING
Sunshine (1999)
It follows three generations of a Jewish family during the changes in Hungary from the beginning of the 20th century to the period after the 1956 Hungarian Revolution.
Play trailer2:28
1 Video
56 Photos
  • Drama
  • History
  • Romance
The fate of a Hungarian Jewish family throughout the 20th century.The fate of a Hungarian Jewish family throughout the 20th century.The fate of a Hungarian Jewish family throughout the 20th century.
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
15K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • István Szabó
  • Writers
    • István Szabó(story)
    • Israel Horovitz(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Ralph Fiennes
    • Rosemary Harris
    • Rachel Weisz
Top credits
  • Director
    • István Szabó
  • Writers
    • István Szabó(story)
    • Israel Horovitz(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Ralph Fiennes
    • Rosemary Harris
    • Rachel Weisz
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 128User reviews
    • 65Critic reviews
    • 71Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 12 wins & 17 nominations

    Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 2:28
    Trailer

    Photos56

    Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes and Jennifer Ehle in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes and Jennifer Ehle in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes and Deborah Kara Unger in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes and Jennifer Ehle in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes and Deborah Kara Unger in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes, Jennifer Ehle, and James Frain in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes, Jennifer Ehle, Rachel Weisz, and Molly Parker in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz in Sunshine (1999)
    Ralph Fiennes and Deborah Kara Unger in Sunshine (1999)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Ralph Fiennes
    Ralph Fiennes
    • Ignatz Sonnenscheinas Ignatz Sonnenschein…
    Rosemary Harris
    Rosemary Harris
    • Valerie Sorsas Valerie Sors
    Rachel Weisz
    Rachel Weisz
    • Gretaas Greta
    Jennifer Ehle
    Jennifer Ehle
    • Valerie Sonnenscheinas Valerie Sonnenschein
    Deborah Kara Unger
    Deborah Kara Unger
    • Maj. Carole Kovácsas Maj. Carole Kovács
    Molly Parker
    Molly Parker
    • Hannah Wippleras Hannah Wippler
    James Frain
    James Frain
    • Gustave Sonnenscheinas Gustave Sonnenschein
    David de Keyser
    David de Keyser
    • Emmanuel Sonnenscheinas Emmanuel Sonnenschein
    John Neville
    John Neville
    • Gustave Sorsas Gustave Sors
    Miriam Margolyes
    Miriam Margolyes
    • Rose Sonnenscheinas Rose Sonnenschein
    Rüdiger Vogler
    Rüdiger Vogler
    • Gen. Jakofalvyas Gen. Jakofalvy
    Mark Strong
    Mark Strong
    • István Sorsas István Sors
    Bill Paterson
    Bill Paterson
    • Minister of Justiceas Minister of Justice
    Trevor Peacock
    Trevor Peacock
    • Comrade Gen. Kopeas Comrade Gen. Kope
    Hanns Zischler
    Hanns Zischler
    • Baron Margittaas Baron Margitta
    Mari Töröcsik
    Mari Töröcsik
    • Older Katoas Older Kato
    Katja Studt
    Katja Studt
    • Katoas Kato
    Péter Andorai
    • Anselmias Anselmi
    • Director
      • István Szabó
    • Writers
      • István Szabó(story) (screenplay)
      • Israel Horovitz(screenplay)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Jennifer Ehle, who plays Young Valerie, is the daughter of Rosemary Harris, who plays Older Valerie.
    • Goofs
      When Adam Sors returns to Budapest after the 1936 Olympics, there is a brief shot of the train station in Budapest showing several Bzmot type trains that were first put in use in 1977.
    • Quotes

      Adam Sors: Never give up your religion. Not for God. God is present in all religions. But if your life becomes a struggle for acceptance, you'll always be unhappy. Religion may not be perfect, but it is a well-built boat that can stay balanced and carry you to the other shore. Our life is nothing but a boat adrift on water balanced by permanent uncertainty. About the people whom you will judge, know this; all they do is struggle to find a kind of security. They're just people, like us. Therefore you mustn't judge them on the basis of appearance or hearsay. Trust no one. Examine all things yourself. Do not join with power. Despise all rank. Do not be ostentatious with what is yours. Owning possessions and property ultimately comes to nothing. Possessions and property can be consumed by fire, swept away by flood, taken away by politics. Do not undertake what you do not know. This causes anxiety which makes you ill. Exercise discipline.

    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Gone in Sixty Seconds/Groove/Sunshine/Love's Labour's Lost/Grass (2000)
    • Soundtracks
      Fantasia for Piano 4 Hands in F minor
      (D 940)

      Music by Franz Schubert

      Performed by Márton Terts, Zsolt Czetner

    User reviews128

    Review
    Top review
    9/10
    Compelling, powerful and insightful
    `Sunshine' is a forceful and wonderful film that follows four generations of a Jewish Hungarian family through seventy tumultuous years of Hungarian history. The story is extremely well done with rich finely etched characters. The screenplay is better suited for a miniseries than a three hour film simply because there is so much material to cover. Three hours is both too long and too short; the story is emotionally exhausting making it too long for one sitting, yet the total length is not long enough to do the subject matter justice.

    Hungarian Writer/Director Istvan Szabo captures Hungary's turbulent transition from empire to fascist state to soviet satellite weaving the history of the times into the lives of this extraordinary family. He puts a human face on the historical facts giving us a disturbingly real look at what it might have been like to live through it, especially from the Jewish perspective.

    Despite a whirlwind pace that requires years to be spanned in minutes, Szabo manages to conjure deep and insightful character studies of the members of each generation. His period renderings are exquisite from costumes to props to locations. This is a wonderfully textured presentation with history layered over the human stories, addressing the many indignities suffered by Jews in Hungary during the period, and the many concessions made to merely stay alive. It is a story that contains both triumph and tragedy, presented with amazing candor.

    Ralph Fiennes gives three incredible performances as the grandfather, father and son of the patriarchy. Szabo has endured criticism for casting the same actor in three roles, but in this case it is an excellent choice. Fiennes is a versatile artist and personalizes three radically different characters, slipping on their personalities like a glove. He loses himself in each, rendering them all passionately but appropriately based on the motivations established in Szabo's careful character development. With Szabo's guidance, it is clear that Fiennes has an inherent understanding of the psyche of his three characters and plays them with believable nuance.

    Two different actresses play Valerie and each is splendid. Jennifer Ehle plays the young Valerie and endows her with ardor and vivacity. She establishes Valerie as the strongest continuing character in the film, providing linkage between the past and the present. In another stroke of casting brilliance, Szabo selects Ehle's real life mother, Rosemary Harris as the elder Valerie. The clear resemblance linked with Harris' magnetic performance adds fullness to Valerie's later years. William Hurt and James Frain lead an ensemble of strong supporting actors that give the film great intensity and depth of talent.

    This thoughtful and emotionally provocative character study is engrossing and compelling. I rated it a 9/10 only because I wish Szabo would have gone deeper and divided it into two or three installments. On a dramatic and artistic level, this film is first rate.
    helpful•60
    5
    • FlickJunkie-2
    • Aug 13, 2001

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 14, 2000 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • Germany
      • Austria
      • Canada
      • Hungary
      • France
      • United Kingdom
      • United States
    • Official sites
      • Hungarian Official Site (Intercom)
      • Metropolitan Filmexport
    • Languages
      • English
      • French
    • Also known as
      • The Taste of Sunshine
    • Filming locations
      • Budapest, Hungary
    • Production companies
      • Alliance Atlantis Communications
      • Bavaria Film and Television Fund
      • Channel Four Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $5,096,267
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $42,700
      • Dec 19, 1999
    • Gross worldwide
      • $7,918,035
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      3 hours 1 minute
    • Color
      • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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