Semmelweis

The only reason I give 3 stars is the cinematography. Which is itself completely all right. But other than that, I would be in real trouble if I had to point out some notable/positive features of the movie. As someone mentioned before, the real downside is the storyline itself. It could have been improved, once they decided to go with fiction instead of sticking with the actual history. I would prefer a more realistic approach any day but this kind of thing can still be legitimate for some people.

The characters were mediocre, it is hard to say anything beyond that. The sophisticated presentation of the characters would have required thoughtful acting, but this was lacking here. There was much more to be made of this topic. This is a one-time watch movie, but only if you really don't have anything better to do.

I've got to admit, overall, there were parts of the movie that really worked for me. The cinematography, the original score, visual effects, costume design, locations, set planning, even the furniture-all of it was seriously well done. The color palette and scene composition were beautiful, and the settings felt authentic and thoughtfully put together. It really gave off a strong, believable vibe of the era.

As for the acting... aside from a few seasoned standouts like László Gálffi, Lajos Kovács, Anna György, and maybe Ferenc Elek, it felt a bit shaky. Semmelweis himself came across as overacted and a bit immature. The younger cast members either overdid it or lacked presence. Makes you wonder if that's on the director or maybe the casting choices?

Costume design deserves another shout-out-it was excellent. The cinematography really helped highlight the period details in the sets and wardrobe.

That said, it's kind of a shame that the film is overwhelmed by melodramatic characters and lines. The key scenes are sometimes way too basic, or they hinge on overly dramatic "quotes" that just don't land.

Also, Semmelweis is constantly sweating-like, drenched. I'm not quite sure why that choice was made. Maybe there's a deeper meaning behind it, but if there is, it went over my head.

The unbreakable element makes a person great, a touching true story based on reality, the image and reality are fascinating. In Hungary today, Semmelweis is a real historical person, I think he portrayed a big problem of the time very well. Check out! In this story, the person is very sympathetic, because if he has a family, he thinks about the big problems and questions of the past, which he could have fixed in a short time with today's knowledge. Great knowledge and thinking can fix these problems, and fortunately it was once again a Hungarian person who was able to fix this, despite the many enemies and skepticism, things were fixed even at that time!

The story line is close to what happened in real life. Missing the coroner from the real life story though. Excellent actors and hope Koltai will win an Oscar with this film.

Semmelweis' story shows that simple being curious, observational and logical can result in life-changing discoveries. The film also shows how some peoples believe they are above others, and the not so straightforward Austrian-Hungarian relationship. A worthwhile film to watch.

Let's hope this Hungarian film about the savior of all mothers and hospital patients will be recognized and enjoyed by the international audience. 👍

Semmelweis was indeed a admirable historical figure, but the movie has added too much romanticized fantasy to the story up to the point where some people would shout "historical inauthenticity".

I understand the need to dramatise the story for the moviegoer audience, but some casting accuracies and factual authenticity wouldn't have hurt the overall enjoyability of the film, but at the same time the struggle of that particular era was really palpable.

In general it was a movie to be seen once, but it won't become a cinema classic, but compromises between drama, authenticity and production budget led to this outcome. You should watch it at least once, to see why science is held back by authority.