Werckmeister Harmonies

The story takes place in Hungary, shortly after WWII. Events center around young János Valuska. Trustworthy, caring and respectful, János enjoys a modest yet peaceful existence with his close knit, extended family. Undaunted by cosmic events that will soon overshadow the whole community, the artistically inspired János directs and narrates a performance for a motley crew of intoxicated misfits in a local bar. Shortly thereafter, a new exhibit featuring a great whale and a foreign prince arrives in town. Apparently, this public display has already caused much commotion in neighboring towns, and once again trouble appears to be brewing. Aunt Tünde tries to organize a committee to restore order. Uncle György, a reclusive reactionary, wants nothing to do with this 'media circus', but in order to avoid confronting his wife directly, he reluctantly agrees to be the chairman. János goes to see the whale and eventually realizes that the exhibit is indeed a diabolical threat to the community, but he still does not understand how or why. Events reach a frightening climax when a mob of angry citizens ransack a hospital. When all the smoke and debris has finally settled, János is left even more clueless than he had been to start. The film insinuates that the Soviets deliberately provoked social unrest in Hungary so as to provide context for a justifiable military takeover. Those who naively cooperated with the Soviets became puppets. Others who opposed the Soviets were either killed or ostracized. The big 'fish out of water' represents the elite members of Hungarian society, who were rendered utterly powerless and useless.