Freedom's Fury

Presented by Pacific Cinémathèque and the Hungarian Canadian Cultural Alliance and the New Hungarian Voice.

There was blood in the water, literally, when the water polo teams of Hungary and the Soviet Union met in the semi-finals of the 1956 Summer Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia. The match, one of the most notorious and violent in any sport in Olympic history, took place just weeks after invading Soviet forces had crushed Hungary’s 1956 uprising against Soviet Communist domination. Tempers were running high and revenge was in the air, but it was below the waterline that many of the most vicious assaults were launched. As verbal taunts escalated into a battle royal of punching, kicking and gouging, even outraged spectators, most of them fervently pro-Hungarian, threatened to join the fray. Written and directed by Colin Gray, executive produced by Lucy Liu and Quentin Tarantino (who described the events as "the best untold story ever") and narrated by Olympic champion swimmer Mark Spitz (who was once coached by Ervin Zádor, a central figure in the tale), this fascinating documentary uses a wealth of archival material to recount the extraordinary "Blood in the Water" match and its historical context. It also records a remarkable reunion, 50 years after the fact, of the surviving Hungarian and Soviet players. 90 mins.

- - - - -
Screens with Touched by Water  
See both films for the Single Bill Ticket Price: 
$9.50 Adults, $8 Students/Seniors
Membership in Pacific Cinémathèque or
the Hungarian Canadian Cultural Alliance
will be accepted for this event. 
- - - - -