Growing Down (Minden rendben) is Bálint Dániel Sós’s first feature. It had its world premiere in the new Perspectives section at this year’s Berlinale. The plot follows Sándor (Szabolcs Hajdu), a widower who is cautiously rebuilding his life after the death of his wife. He is hopeful about blending his family with that of his girlfriend, Klára (Anna Háy), who has a daughter named Sari (Zonga Jakab-Aponyi). Sándor has two children of his own: 12-year-old Dénes (Ágoston Sáfrány) and his older brother Zsiga (Milan Zikkert). The story begins optimistically as the two families unite, culminating in a joint 12th birthday celebration for Denes and Sari at Klara’s home. However, things will soon take a sharp turn.
A terrible incident involving Sari caused by Dénes occurs during the party, which tests Sándor’s loyalties. Will he reveal what he witnessed or keep quiet out of fear that his son will end up in juvenile detention? In any case, what happened seriously damaged not only Sari but also the relations and trust between Sándor and Klára. The remainder of the film revolves more around the increasingly fragile relationship and distrust than about Sari’s condition. Sándor’s initial act of protection spirals into a web of guilt, secrecy, and mounting tension as the truth threatens to arise from the contradictions in his and Dénes’ different statements.
Everything is not fine in Growing Down
The original title, Minden rendben, means “everything is fine”, which is far from the case in the film. There is tension in Sándor’s family already before the horrific occurrence. On the way to the joint party, he tells his sons that it would be nice if they could act like a normal family for once. The party is actually going well until the shock that changes everything. The director has said that one of the sources of inspiration was a situation with his own children. It sparked an ambiguous reaction where he felt like scolding and protecting his children. The script, co-written by Gergő Nagy, handles this kind of ambivalence remarkably well.
There is nobody to root for nor any clear antagonist, but we see people in real pain for different reasons. The superb script is deftly handled by the actors, who are uniformly excellent. Szabolcs Hajdu may be most known as a director, even though he was an actor before he started directing. In a challenging part, he never puts a foot wrong. Ágoston Sáfrány is as remarkable as Dénes as well. The whole cast is perfect, which is a testament to Sós’ directing skills in his first film. The black and white cinematography by Kristóf M. Deák is also outstanding, with a fluidity that is almost Medvigyan in parts. It is, obviously, different from the colours in Cat Call.
Growing Down is a mere 86 minutes long, and the runtime is tightly paced while still managing to be impressively nuanced. Credit should also go to the editor, Márton Gothár, and not least, the two composers Ambrus Tövisházi and Máriusz Fodor. Bálint Dániel Sós’s first film is a triumph in several aspects, and I can’t wait to see his sophomore effort.