CTA Tattler

Life imitates art imitates life

My wife and I saw a way cool movie this weekend called "Kontroll," set in the depths of the world's second-oldest subway system in Budapest, Hungary.

The main conflict and suspense revolves around train ticket inspectors and a shadowy figure who emerges to shove unsuspecting passengers under the wheels of train cars screeching into the station. I was going to recommend this DVD and that was going to be the extent of of this post.

Until I read about this out of New York City: "Pushed in Front of Subway, Man Is Killed."

Damn. Life imitating art imitating life.

The film actually is quite riveting. That's quite a recommendation coming from a guy like me who hates subtitles, let only subtitles from the original Hungarian.

An unintentionally hilarious part of the film comes at the very beginning, before it actually starts, when a guy who appears to be the Frank Kruesi of the Budapest subway system stands on the platform and recites a disclaimer from a clipboard he's holding. He says that people warned him not to let the director use the Budapest subway for such a film, but that he did permit it because he figured people were smart enough to understand it was just a film, and well hey, anyway, we need more films about the battle between good and evil.

It's absolutely a hoot to watch and hear this guy! I can just imagine Kruesi at the beginning of "Risky Business" saying something like: "I decided to allow the director to film on the El car because everyone knows there are hot sex scenes in the Hobo Corner all the time."