Sunshine

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Sunshine

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Sunshine

Deborah Kara Unger, Jennifer Ehle, Molly Parker, Rachel Weisz, Ralph Fiennes

Although Sunshine was made by a Hungarian, István Szabó, and deals with the history of Hungary as refracted through three generations of a Jewish-Hungarian family, you might be more inclined to give i...( read more  read more... )t three hours of your own life if you approach it as a David Lean movie in spirit. It is an English-language picture, and Maurice Jarre's music recalls his score for Doctor Zhivago. Szabó emulates Lean's intimate-epic style of merging the sweep of history with the crystalline detailing of individual lives, so that the shape of destiny is glimpsed through personal moments that feel at once evanescent and eternal. His lighting cameraman, Lajos Koltai, is one of the handful of cinematographers equal to capturing these moments in lapidary images--cinematic sunshine of the highest order.

"Sunshine" is a literal translation of Sonnenschein, the family name of the central characters. And "destiny" is one meaning of Sors, the name three Sonnenschein offspring choose for themselves to better assimilate as subjects of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Two are brothers, Ignatz (Ralph Fiennes) and Gustave (James Frain); their sister (by adoption) Valerie (Jennifer Ehle) is really their cousin. Both men love her, and Ignatz rocks the ultratraditional family by taking her as his wife. Nevertheless, the Sonnenscheins and the Sors enter upon the 20th century in loving solidarity, grateful to live under a liberal and tolerant regime. That's all swept away by the Great War, the rise of Nazism, and its replacement, the new fascism of Stalinist Communism. Valerie survives them all--though she's played later on by Rosemary Harris, Ehle's own mother. For his part--or parts--Ralph Fiennes goes on to embody two later generations of Sonnenschein/Sors men, the proudly patriotic Adam and his son, the rudderless Ivan, whose guilt over being a compliant prisoner at Auschwitz leads him to buy into the passionate puritanism of the Stalinist purges. Fiennes rises to the awesome challenge of creating three utterly distinct characters who all share the same congenital weaknesses and aching potential for greatness.

This is a film of considerable beauty and sometimes shattering power. Even three hours is not enough to do justice to all the characters, all the wrenching turnarounds of history and political allegiance and rectitude. But the film is never less than gripping, and as an essay on "family values," it's well-nigh definitive. --Richard T. Jameson

Id: 3143419

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Sunshine Recent Reviews
  • JeT0425
    April 13, 2007
    JeT0425
    This 3-hour epic is probably one of the most powerful films I have ever seen. It tells the story of a Jewish family living in Hungary through three generations. Ralph Fiennes plays three characters in this film (Ignatz Sonnenschein, his son Adam Sors, and his grandson Ivan Sors) ...( read more)and even though I didn't quite like that idea, he did a brilliant job. He is one hell of an actor and he just keeps getting better. István Szabó created a masterpiece here and it's a shame this film was only recognized for it's outstanding... well, everything... at the Golden Globes. Jennifer Ehle (who uncannily resembles Meryl Streep in her younger years) gives an Oscar-worthy performance as Valerie Sors. Rosemarry Harris, Ehle's real life mother, plays the older version of Ehle in the film and she does a terrific job. Weisz, Unger, Hurt and Margolyes are a pleasure to watch, too. Overall, this film is magnificent and is one of the best films of the 1990s.
  • shortcartoonist
    October 3, 2006
    shortcartoonist
    Like most other Holocaust films, Sunshine could have suffered the innadequacies of focusing on the harrowing ordeals of it's main protagonists through the oppression of this era, however, this film proves as being a very different affair, an affair that works on many levels. Here...( read more), Szabo' has created a film that focuses itself on the family unit, on redemption, and on love as we witness the breaking of rules and convention. Ralph Fiennes is simply maginificent in his three roles, he manages to give each character a different persona and is able to add to the evolution of this family through his three roles. The support casting is almost as impeccable, though, this is where the first fault of Sunshine comes into fruition. The potential for the support cast to rise and add more depth to the film is always stunted by the ongoing presence of Fiennes' characters, basically, the film uses too much of Fiennes and through this we are never given a more broader recounting of these times. However, the flow and storytelling of this piece are sublime as we watch the film move from time to time in great fashion through the use of stock footage and set/costume designs. But, again as with before, whenever an event occurs that promotes emotion in the audience (which it usually succeeds with) it seems that the event is never explored enough in depth. Had Szabo' utilized the camera and the simplicities of more music in the picture then it would be that much closer to being a rounded piece. Sunshine is not a masterpiece, as hard as it tries at points, but it is still a very good film and a fine example of versatility in acting.
  • RashHunt
    May 31, 2006
    RashHunt
    Good show, and Hungary's first step to near-brilliance. Unfortunately it lags and its subtle nature kind of defuses the entertainment value - not that it doesn't make up for it with glee.
  • ladyp1964
    May 26, 2006
    ladyp1964
    A stunningly interesting film starrring an outstanding Ralph Fiennes. He is perfect for the parts (yes plural) that he plays here and I cannot imagine anyone else in this role. In spite of it being a 3 hour film the first hour is far too fast-moving and for those who know nothi...( read more)ng about the rise and fall of the Hungarian empire will no doubt get lost and confused. More should have been shown of the Hungary both during and before Emperor Franz-Josef's reign for a better comparison of what it went down to. The political argument is shown only within the Sors family (which family doesn't argue) but when the eye doesn't actually see the differences between pomp and poverty it is difficult to imagine. Falling in and out of love in this film is neither romantic nor erotic so the lovers of those genres won't get enough to satisfy themselves. A remarkable though purely factual film.
  • Manuoconnell
    September 17, 2009
    Manuoconnell
    Conta a História de 3 Geraçőes de uma fomra bem Legal. Demorado.
  • animefreakbloodgoth
    September 8, 2009
    animefreakbloodgoth
    it was a really really good ...
    i love it ....
  • Abzurdoh
    July 28, 2009
    Abzurdoh
    Una pelicula un tanto cuanto larga, que ya en la ultima hora se cae un poco y las cosas empiezan a dejar de 'suceder'. Algo altamente rescatable son todas y cada una de sus actuaciones; realmente convincentes y redondas. Creo que es de las cintas en las que he disfrutado sobreman...( read more)era la participacion de sus actores. Grandes participaciones. La pelicula ademas tiene datos interesantes y curiosos, pero por el mismo hecho de que se quieren contar tres generaciones en tres horas, a veces pequenos detalles no son del todo apreciados debido a que tiene un ritmo algo rapido y le da mas tiempo a sus pausas emocionales que a sus mensajes escondidos y simbolismos cinematograficos. Sin embargo, no deja de ser buena recomendacion para aquellos fanaticos del cine epico.
  • HeathcliffMalachy
    April 29, 2009
    HeathcliffMalachy
    In Short: Great-grandpa Sonnenschein established a family fortune when he created the Elixir of Sunshine, hoping that his son, grandson and further generations would carry on the family legacy ? but they have different ideas about how they want to spend their lives.


    Recommend: Yes
  • egominiscule
    January 23, 2009
    egominiscule
    In the footsteps of 'Schindler's list'.
    Fiennes likes himself too much. Three times the same actor playing the same character three times over. No thanks.
  • jp992751
    January 23, 2009
    jp992751
    good sci fi but way too complex.
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