The first teaser trailer of ELK*RTUK, a Hungarian political thriller about the infamous leaked speech of Former Socialist Prime Minister, Ferenc Gyurcsány, and the 2006 mass protests and rioting that followed, has arrived. The release date of the trailer is hardly a coincidence, as May 26th marks the 15th anniversary of the speech that completely reshaped the political map of Hungary.
The film ELK*RTUK is being produced by Gábor Kálomista’s production company who is close to ruling Fidesz. The title of the movie is a clear reference to Ferenc Gyurcsány’s 2006 speech, literally meaning “we f@ked it up” (the asterisk was probably added to avoid having to change the vulgar title).
In his speech, Gyurcsány criticized his own government and party, including himself, for misleading people and said that its coalition government had enacted no significant measures over its tenure, and their only achievement was staying in power (“You cannot name any significant government measures that we can be proud of except pulling our administration out of the sh@t at the end. Nothing!”). Not only the content but also the profanity of the speech has angered many. Some of the most notable excerpts from Gyurcsány’s speech include: “That is because we have fucked it up. Not just a bit, but a lot,” or “Obviously, we lied throughout the last year-and-a-half, two years.”
After the public radio began broadcasting the leaked audio on September 17, 2006, mass protests and rioting took place in Budapest. The speech had triggered such a serious impact and reactions that completely re-shaped modern-day Hungarian politics. It ultimately led to the popular collapse of MSZP and even the Hungarian political left and the two-party system, paving the way for Viktor Orbán’s and Fidesz’s super-majority victory in the 2010 Hungarian parliamentary elections.
In the film, when an ambitious but repressed polling expert discovers that his boss has been involved in leaking a scandalous audio recording, he decides to uncover the truth in order to blackmail his way into a better position. He teams up with his journalist girlfriend to investigate, but after confronting his boss he becomes the target of a powerful circle.
Shortly after the release of the new teaser, news site Index published an interview with Gábor Kálomista and co-producer Dorottya Helmeczy. Kálomista denied it being a propaganda film, because to him “film is a more sacred genre than to use it as a weapon.”
According to the producer, the film is about a man who has sworn to represent the interests of the Hungarian Republic, but who gains power by lying and falsifying data for a year and a half.
“My personal opinion, independent of the film, is that I do not understand what this man is still doing in Hungary’s public life. A prime minister who orders his own citizens to be shot, and passers-by to be beaten with a blade, and I could go on and on about all the things he has done against democracy,” Kálomista said in the interview.
Photo via ELK*RTUK ‘s official Facebook page
The release date of the movie is unknown but many believe the film will arrive in cinemas shortly before the 2022 Hungarian general elections.
Marking the 15th anniversary of the leaked speech, ruling Fidesz party communications director shared a video message saying former Socialist prime minister Ferenc Gyurcsány, “who confessed to lying to the Hungarian people” 15 years ago “still leads Hungary’s left wing.” István Hollik said, “There isn’t any other Gyurcsány,” adding that the current leader of the opposition Democratic Coalition had “confessed to deceiving the Hungarian people.” “Today’s left is the same as the old. Nothing has changed,” the Fidesz politician noted.
Viktor Orbán has also marked the 15th anniversary of the Őszöd speech, sharing an excerpt of it on Facebook. The Prime Minister also asked everyone where they were when they first heard the speech.
It didn’t take long for Ferenc Gyurcsány to comment on Orbán’s post.
“And where were you when Fidesz was robbing the country?”, Gyurcsány asked the prime minister.
Gyurcsány didn’t stop there, he also commented under an article reporting about the new trailer of ELK*RTUK.
“Imdb 2.6,” he sarcastically wrote, predicting the rating of the upcoming political thriller.
In the featured photo: Ferenc Gyurcsány in 2012. Photo by János Marjai/MTI
