Hukkle DVD, 2002

Set to the rhythm of an old man’s hiccups, Hukkle melds quirky observation of the goings-on in a Hungarian village with Life on Earth style documentary footage of moles, snakes, bees, frogs and plant life to produce a satisfyingly eccentric and wholly enjoyable portrait of a place in which there is as much happening below the surface as above. Indeed, there are sinister events afoot in the village as the women furtively pass around small bottles of poison for the purpose of bumping off their husbands – there seems to have been a communal agreement that the place will be better off without them, and the local herbalist obliges with a decoction of lily of the valley. Village life continues unruffled however (except there are increasingly less men playing skittles of an evening), and the deaths are presented in such a matter of fact way that they are barely even remarked upon. The local policeman thinks he’s on to something but is powerless to do anything and though wary, seems resigned to his eventual fate. This description makes Hukkle sound far too plot based though. Its real joy is to be found in the textures of daily life – the patterns of wallpapers and tablecloths, people’s clothing and faces and the sounds of the village. The director knows these thoroughly and you get the sense he had enormous fun using them.
If the plot, such as it is, is presented in a wholly undramatic way, the real excitement of the film comes in wondering just where you are going to be led next and what is going to happen, or indeed what you are actually looking at at some points. It’s a packed film, rich in rhythm and texture, the kind you realise you are watching with a permanent grin.

Graeme Hobbs on 12th May 2005
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