Austin Film Festival - The Man Who Was Thursday
Following a disgraceful turn at his local parish Father Smith is called to Rome for spiritual
rehabilitation. Upon his arrival Charles, the man who introduced him to the faith, reveals the real reason Smith was brought to Rome: to go underground and ascertain the mysterious leader of an anarchist group of renegades. The rift between reality and fantasy is blurred as Smith finds himself going further and further down the rabbit hole in this surreal thriller.
Interview with Writer/Director Balazs Juszt
Watch The Man Who Was Thursday on Prime Video and Vudu
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Thank you. I’m in show-business, not show-show. I’ve made it for the audience, so while we were making it, it was our film, now it belongs to them. If all goes as intended, G.K. Chesterton’s original story from 1908 will spark discussions among the viewers, who’ll hopefully have the courage to question their belief systems, because it is the things we cannot prove, yet take for granted, that give rise to most of the world’s problems. Oh, did I say I wanted to entertain? Yes, this film does that, first and foremost.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
One of the characters in the film says: if you’re old enough to fuck, you’re old enough to be fucked with. We don’t push the envelope: we tear it up and throw the pieces off the terrace of St. Peter’s Basilica.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Father Smith goes through the film like I go through life: I don’t know the reason, the meaning or whether it leads anywhere. I’m hoping for a payoff and a higher purpose like most people in the world, because it’s comforting to know I’m not alone and I can receive absolution, but from who and why do I need it? I’m a fatalist, but I don’t know I’m right, I just found comforting to believe that everything happens for a reason. Everyone seeks this emotional comfort somewhere, but whether it’s true or not, whether someone is more right than the other, can never be answered. That’s a fact.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?
Chesterton’s original book is about a young poet in London’s Saffron Park at the wake of the 20th century. To move that into a contemporary world and set it against the backdrop of the Catholic Church was a rather large step in and of itself. The script went through some 13 drafts before we hit production, but like Hemingway said, “The first draft of anything is shit.” I do not limit my crew or my actors, so if and when people have great ideas, whether it’d be with a
piece of costume, a better camera angle or a wittier line to say, my job is not to make my will
triumph over everyone else’s; it is to direct the best film possible, so there is plenty of development during the course of filming in this sense.
After the editor completed the assembly cut, it ran in at a 136 minutes. The final film is 95 minutes long, but as opposed to some directors, who’d view this process as the decapitation of their baby, I view it as removing cancerous parts to cure the patient, simply because some things that worked on paper or even on set, may not necessarily work in the film. It is important to note that parts of the film - the nightmares - take place in 1942.
Following the test screenings, we’ve found out that I had made a terribly wrong assumption in that people would know who Benito Mussolini was (Il Duce, the fascist dictator of Italy before and during World War II). This was a mistake on my part. Over 70% of test audiences in three countries did not know, some could not even place the time period. So we’ve had to toss out an entire scene and reshoot it with different dialogue in Rome and also add a new scene in front of Castel Sant’Angelo to make sure we cover the brief ‘history lesson’. The moral of this story is simple: making a movie about the dangers of history repeating itself is not redundant, as people have already forgotten their history. They always do.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
Overwhelmingly positive. The one negative one was: even if at times I had no idea where I was
going, I never felt lost, and the payoff at the end justified everything. That’s what I was aiming for. I love twisty, mind-fuck films and this one kicks it up a notch. It’s like having really, really, really long tantric sex. Try it.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
The Europeans received the film with a lot of philosophical questions about anarchy, freedom, and the individual’s role in a tyrannic rule. The Americans seem to be only caring about the bashing of the Catholic Church and the sex. I’m glad everyone has an entry point to the cerebral vortex of the movie, because it means they can meet in the middle and start a discussion. Art should bring people together, not divide them, like religion so often does.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on
www.wearemovingstories.com?
Our leading actors are phenomenally talented. Francois Arnaud and Ana Ularu are actor’s actors, who are in total command of their craft and shine with challenging, difficult roles that carry a lot of weight and subtext and they can make it look seamless. Each and every one of them deserves more attention, because they are living, breathing personalities who, unlike some of the stars working today, can actually interpret and understand what they do and are in total command of their powers. Independent cinema provides these talented people the platform to communicate through and I feel your outlet can provide some help in this.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film
festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
We have great producers and a sales agent on board as well. We’re still looking for distribution and film festivals to showcase the film and of course, a little publicity never hurt.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
Explosive.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
If one person is delusional, it’s a psychiatric case. If a lot of people are, is it religion?
What are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Francois Arnaud has just finished a film directed by James Franco and he’s currently shooting
NBC’s Midnight Texas for a mid-season premiere. Ana Ularu stars in Inferno and plays the Wicked Witch of the West in NBC’s Emerald City, premiering January 6th. I’m writing a mini series about a KGB-Mossad double agent during the hottest era of the Cold War - a true story, and I have two feature projects I would like to pursue.
Interview: October 2016
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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
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The Man Who Was Thursday
Following a disgraceful turn at his local parish Father Smith is called to Rome for spiritual
rehabilitation. Upon his arrival Charles, the man who introduced him to the faith, reveals the real reason Smith was brought to Rome: to go underground and ascertain the mysterious leader of an anarchist group of renegades. The rift between reality and fantasy is blurred as Smith finds himself going further and further down the rabbit hole in this surreal thriller.
Length: 95 min.
Director: Balazs Juszt
Producer: Guy Moshe, Matthew G. Zamias, Moritz Hamm, Patrick Hamm
Writer: Balazs Juszt, inspired by G.K. Chesterton’s novel of the same title
About the writer, director and producer:
Key cast: Francois Arnaud, Ana Ularu, Jordi Molla, Mark Ivanir
Where will it screen in the next month?
October 19: Austin Film Festival
October 23: Hungarian Film Festival, Los Angeles