My 20th Century

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My 20th Century

1989

1h 42m

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

100%

Tomatometer

10 Reviews

67%

Popcornmeter

250+ Ratings

Born in Budapest, Lila (Dorotha Segda) and Dora (also Segda) are twin sisters who, after being orphaned in childhood, are adopted by two different families and separated. Purely by chance, they both book passage on the Orient Express on the same day, but while Dora is the mistress of a rich man, Lila has become a terrorist with intentions of blowing up the train. Meanwhile, elegant passenger Z (Oleg Yankovsky), romances Dora and is spurned by Lila -- but he has no idea he's dealing with twins.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

An elegant midsummer, end-century night's dream of a film, with an elusive, gossamer lightness.

Rated: 4/5

Oct 5, 2018

Full Review

Marya E. Gates

Cool People Have Feelings, Too. (Substack)

Enyedi finds the magic in this era - from the Orient Express to wonder of electricity - and displays them in beautiful black and white, with imagery reminiscent of the silent era.

Feb 13, 2024

Full Review

Pamela Hutchinson

Silent London

Enyedi's film has the capacity to make ideas and inventions that are now familiar seem new again, to imbue them with the sense of wonder and magic that they once held.

Apr 21, 2020

Full Review

Lewis Porteous

The Skinny

This is a movie concerned with dualities: of east and west, wealth and poverty, science and nature, male and female, light and dark, past and future, fact and fiction.

Rated: 4/5

Mar 27, 2017

Full Review

Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

Never excited me with its whimsical story.

Rated: B-

Jul 2, 2010

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Cole Smithey

ColeSmithey.com

Rated: 5/5

Nov 1, 2008

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Audience Member

The plot is a little hard to follow, but narrative is not the point of this film. It's about the pleasures of pure cinema. The opening scene with the lightbulbs, Dora's flirtatious laugh, the hall of mirrors where the film ends, those are among the things I enjoyed about this. It has the look of a silent film, a little grainy, lots of deep focus, even down to the janky SFX. Fans of Guy Maddin would approve.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/18/23

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Audience Member

Couldn't hang with it. Had to bail when a monkey starts telling a couple about a story from Africa. The black and white cinematography is beautiful, dazzling even. There's a compelling story about two twins adopted (absconded by) by two separate men who grow up to lead separate lives, one of wealth and splendor, the other of anarchy. But there's just too much ... ahem ... monkey business, interludes that feel like experimental shorts that are just too disruptive - artsy or not. Johnny C sez if you like silliness sprinkled in with serious, check it out.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/17/23

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Audience Member

Beautiful black and white photography in this experimental, thought-provoking dramedy.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

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Audience Member

Why back in 2002 I signed up for a Women Studies class to fill an elective. The first day of class they showed us this movie. After watching it I couldn't have been more confused on how this movie related to women studies. The fact that my grade depended on me knowing why that dog was having mind experiments done sent shivers down my spine. To this day when someone starts talking about gender issues I have flash backs to the dog with mind probes escaping and running through the field. If you are just looking for a weird movie to watch with a lot of symbolism you might not hate it. But please never force anyone else to watch this and write a paper on it.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

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Audience Member

7.2/10, my review: http://wp.me/p1eXom-2Tq

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/05/23

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Audience Member

Someone please convert to digital media! This film is too important to disappear!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

Full Review

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Ildikó Enyedi

Director

Dorota Segda

Dóra

Oleg Jankovskij

Z

Péter Andorai

Thomas Edison

Paulus Manker

Weininger Ottó

Gábor Máté

K

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Synopsis

Born in Budapest, Lila (Dorotha Segda) and Dora (also Segda) are twin sisters who, after being orphaned in childhood, are adopted by two different families and separated. Purely by chance, they both book passage on the Orient Express on the same day, but while Dora is the mistress of a rich man, Lila has become a terrorist with intentions of blowing up the train. Meanwhile, elegant passenger Z (Oleg Yankovsky), romances Dora and is spurned by Lila -- but he has no idea he's dealing with twins.

Director: Ildikó Enyedi
Producer: Archy Dolder, Norbert Friedländer, Gábor Sarudi, Andrei Schwartz
Screenwriter: Ildikó Enyedi
Production Co: Mafilm [hu]
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: Hungarian
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 20, 2020
Box Office (Gross USA): $17.4K
Runtime: 1h 42m
Sound Mix: Mono

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