THE TRAGEDY OF MAN
(AZ EMBER TRAGÉDIÁJA)
dir. Marcell Jankovics, 2011
Hungary, 166 mins
In Hungarian with English subtitles
SUNDAY, APRIL 6 – 5 PM
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16 – 7 PM
SATURDAY, APRIL 26 – 10 PM
In 1957, Pannónia Film Studio was established, marking the beginning of the golden age of Hungarian animation. Cartoons received less scrutiny from state censors than live-action work, letting them travel easily beyond the Iron Curtain and reach prestigious Western film festivals like Cannes and ceremonies such as the Academy Awards. Pannónia became one of the top animation studios in the world, alongside Disney and Toei.
Marcell Jankovics is probably the most internationally recognized Hungarian animator. He started working at Pannónia as a stage manager at age 19 in 1960, becoming a director in 1965. In 1973, the Hungarian government commissioned the country’s first feature-length animated film, JOHNNY CORNCOB, which Jankovics directed. In 1981, he released his most famous work, SON OF THE WHITE MARE, to international success, though it ran into censorship issues because of its non-Marxist interpretation of time. Both films have enjoyed tenures at Spectacle, in 2016 and 2022.
In 1983, Jankovics finished writing his magnum opus, THE TRAGEDY OF MAN, based on the dramatic poem by Imre Madách. This epic tale chronicles the journey of Adam, Eve, and Lucifer across the full breadth of human history. It began production in 1988, just a year before the fall of communism in Europe. In an interview with Cartoon Brew, Jankovics said, “There were political changes in Hungary which made me freer to express myself and communicate my ideas more clearly.” But this also led to the denationalization of the country’s film industry, resulting in the loss of state funding which Jankovics and other golden-age animators depended on.
Jankovics spent the next 23 years in a pattern of securing funding, creating one of the film’s 15 segments, then hunting for more funding. The film, finally finished in 2011, stands as one of the longest animated features ever made. Some notable funding came after Jankovics’ Oscar-nominated short SISYPHUS (1974) was used in a GM commercial aired during the 2008 Super Bowl. Another batch came after Disney animator/director Roger Allers watched a bootleg copy of SON OF THE WHITE MARE and convinced the studio to hire Jankovics to work on KINGDOM OF THE SUN, the project that would ultimately become THE EMPEROR’S NEW GROOVE (2000). Jancovics left amid the film’s heavy retooling, stating, “What I had made wasn’t used in the ruined, stupid, kitschy final version.”
Each chapter of THE TRAGEDY OF MAN showcases a unique visual style, reflecting various moments in history. The shifting animation enhances the film’s grand scope and deepens its emotional resonance, allowing viewers to experience a broad spectrum of human experiences and philosophies. Despite its critical acclaim, the film has rarely screened in the United States outside its original festival run in 2011. This April, Spectacle invites you to embark on an epic journey through mankind’s past, present, and future with Jankovics’ 20th-century masterpiece.