Two Half Times in Hell
Encyclopedia
Two Half Times In Hell (Hungarian
: Két félidő a pokolban), also known as The Last Goal is a 1962 Hungarian
war
drama film
based on The Death Match
.
Film, directed by Zoltán Fábri
, won a Critics Award at Boston Cinema Festival 1962. There are two remake
s of this film: The Longest Yard and Escape to Victory
.
officers want to organize a football match for Hitler's
birthday, in which Germans would play against Hungarian prisoners of war. They call for the famous Hungarian footballer, Ónódi, and order him to organize a team. Ónódi accepts, but in turn demands extra food, a ball with which he and his team can train before the match, and asks that they be allowed to concentrate on training before the match and not work. The Germans accept all the demands, but recommend Ónódi not include any Jews
in his team. However, Ónódi can't organize the team only from his company
, because only 8 out of 98 soldiers can play football. Therefore Ónódi recruits players from the other company. One of the players is Steiner, who is a Jew and can't play football. He lied to Ónódi because he was afraid to die. During training the footballers kill a German corporal
and try to escape. Then they are caught while disposing of his body. As a result, they are to be tried and face probable death penalty
. However, the Germans order the Hungarian team to still play the match. At the beginning of the match Ónódi and his team are discouraged, as the Germans easily score three goals. The Hungarians succeed in scoring one goal and the first half ends 3-1 in favour of Germany. At the interval the German commander tells the Hungarians that they might not be executed if they lose the match. The Hungarians refuse to believe this. At the beginning of the second half they score three goals. As a result, during the match, they are executed by the Germans.
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
: Két félidő a pokolban), also known as The Last Goal is a 1962 Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
war
War film
War films are a film genre concerned with warfare, usually about naval, air or land battles, sometimes focusing instead on prisoners of war, covert operations, military training or other related subjects. At times war films focus on daily military or civilian life in wartime without depicting battles...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
based on The Death Match
The Death Match
The Death Match was the Soviet propaganda name for a non-official association football match in 1942 between the local workers of a bakery factory — former professional footballers from Dynamo Kyiv and Lokomotyv Kyiv — and soldiers of the Nazi German Wehrmacht...
.
Film, directed by Zoltán Fábri
Zoltán Fábri
Zoltán Fábri was a Hungarian film director and screenwriter. His films The Boys of Paul Street and Hungarians were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film....
, won a Critics Award at Boston Cinema Festival 1962. There are two remake
Remake
A remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
s of this film: The Longest Yard and Escape to Victory
Escape to Victory
Escape to Victory, known simply as Victory in North America, is a 1981 film about Allied prisoners of war who are interned in a German prison camp during World War II...
.
Plot
Spring 1944. NaziNazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
officers want to organize a football match for Hitler's
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
birthday, in which Germans would play against Hungarian prisoners of war. They call for the famous Hungarian footballer, Ónódi, and order him to organize a team. Ónódi accepts, but in turn demands extra food, a ball with which he and his team can train before the match, and asks that they be allowed to concentrate on training before the match and not work. The Germans accept all the demands, but recommend Ónódi not include any Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
in his team. However, Ónódi can't organize the team only from his company
Company (military unit)
A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 80–225 soldiers and usually commanded by a Captain, Major or Commandant. Most companies are formed of three to five platoons although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure...
, because only 8 out of 98 soldiers can play football. Therefore Ónódi recruits players from the other company. One of the players is Steiner, who is a Jew and can't play football. He lied to Ónódi because he was afraid to die. During training the footballers kill a German corporal
Corporal
Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
and try to escape. Then they are caught while disposing of his body. As a result, they are to be tried and face probable death penalty
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
. However, the Germans order the Hungarian team to still play the match. At the beginning of the match Ónódi and his team are discouraged, as the Germans easily score three goals. The Hungarians succeed in scoring one goal and the first half ends 3-1 in favour of Germany. At the interval the German commander tells the Hungarians that they might not be executed if they lose the match. The Hungarians refuse to believe this. At the beginning of the second half they score three goals. As a result, during the match, they are executed by the Germans.
Cast
- Imre SinkovitsImre SinkovitsImre Sinkovits was a Hungarian actor.-Awards:*Kossuth Prize *Mari Jászai Award *Kazinczy Award...
as Ónódi - Dezső GarasDezső GarasDezső Garas is a Hungarian actor. He has appeared in over 145 films and television shows since 1956. He starred in the 1993 film Whoops, which was entered into the 43rd Berlin International Film Festival.-Selected filmography:...
as Steiner - József Szendrõ as sergeant Rápity
- István Velenczei as Ferenczi
- Gyula Benkő as Sztepan
- János GörbeJános GörbeJános Görbe :hu:Görbe János was a prominent Hungarian actor of film and theater...
as Eberhardt - Tibor MolnárTibor MolnárTibor Molnár was a Hungarian film actor. He appeared in 96 films between 1948 and 1982.-Selected filmography:* Two Confessions * Two Half Times in Hell * The Round-Up...
as Rácz - János Makláry as sergeant Holup
- Siegfried Brachfeld as captain Heilig
- Antal Farkas as corporal Csorba
- János Rajz as Lipták
- László MárkusLászló MárkusLászló Márkus was a Hungarian actor. He appeared in over 90 films and television shows between 1952 and 1985...
as Pogány - János Koltai as Géza
- Zoltán GeraZoltán Gera (actor)Gera Zoltán is a Hungarian supporting actor. He has starred in 115 movies so far .-Selected international filmography:# Rose's Songs as Mr...
as Tankó