Don’t Cry, Pretty Girls! (1970) — AI Story Visualization

Plot Analysis Summary

Young people seek belonging and freedom while family loss, social rejection, and coercive expectations keep their futures unsettled.

Story Structure — 5 Plot Phases

A Home Remembered

The film begins with a request for a white chair and a cello performance. Juli recalls a former family life of shared meals and music before those domestic comforts disappeared.

Key Events

• Request for a White Chair — A white chair is requested so a young musician can play the cello. Characters: Juli, Juli Location: Performance setting
• Family Memory Begins — Juli recalls when her family still lived together. Characters: Juli, Juli, Juli Location: Family home
• Shared Meals and Music — The family shares meals and music before domestic life fades. Characters: Juli, Juli, Juli Location: Family home
• Searching for Belonging — Young people search for somewhere they can belong. Characters: Juli, Juli, Juli Location: Open settlement area

Shelter Without Belonging

Young people search for a place where they can belong and move into empty shacks. Police, residents, and neighbors repeatedly reject their attempt to create a home.

Key Events

• Searching for Belonging — Young people search for somewhere they can belong. Characters: Juli, Juli, Juli Location: Open settlement area
• Empty Shacks Become Shelter — The young people move into empty shacks and try to make homes. Characters: Juli, Juli, Juli Location: Empty shacks
• Police Order Eviction — A police officer arrives and orders the young people out. Characters: Juli, Juli, Juli Location: Empty shacks
• Neighbors Drive Them Away — Residents and neighbors also force the group away. Characters: Juli, Juli, Juli Location: Settlement area
• Songs of Exclusion — Their songs express freedom, frustration, and social judgment. Characters: Juli, Juli, Juli Location: Performance area

Music and Constraint

Songs express both freedom and frustration as Juli becomes drawn to Géza's music and ideas. Their connection grows while work and social pressure limit Juli's choices.

Key Events

• Songs of Exclusion — Their songs express freedom, frustration, and social judgment. Characters: Juli, Juli, Juli Location: Performance area
• Juli Notices Géza — Juli is drawn to Géza and his music. Characters: Juli, Géza, zenész Location: Performance area
• Ideas Beyond Appearances — Géza's music and ideas suggest a less confined life. Characters: Juli, Géza, zenész Location: Performance area
• Pressure and Work — Their connection develops amid uncertainty, work, and pressure. Characters: Juli, Géza, zenész Location: Settlement area
• Promise Invoked Against Juli — Savanyú and his friend say Juli is promised to another man. Characters: Juli, Savanyú, Savanyú Location: Living quarters
• Support Becomes Leverage — They remind Juli that they have provided for her. Characters: Juli, Savanyú, Savanyú Location: Living quarters
• Savanyú Warns Géza — Savanyú warns Géza to leave Juli alone. Characters: Savanyú, Géza, zenész, Juli Location: Settlement area

An Uncertain Invitation

Savanyú and his friend claim that Juli is already promised to another man and invoke their support for her. An invitation to the countryside is arranged, but the consequences remain unclear.

Key Events

• Savanyú Warns Géza — Savanyú warns Géza to leave Juli alone. Characters: Savanyú, Géza, zenész, Juli Location: Settlement area
• Invitation to the Countryside — Juli is invited to travel but says she has to work. Characters: Juli, Savanyú, Savanyú Location: Settlement area
• Travel Arrangement — The countryside invitation is eventually arranged, with no clear outcome. Characters: Juli, Savanyú, Savanyú Location: Settlement area
• Performance Tensions Rise — A performance becomes charged with social and personal tension. Characters: Juli, Géza, zenész, Savanyú, Savanyú Location: Performance space

Violence at the Performance

A performance erupts when men rush the stage and fight. Savanyú refuses his companions' demand for a retaliatory attack, and the group leaves with Juli's future unresolved.

Key Events

• Performance Tensions Rise — A performance becomes charged with social and personal tension. Characters: Juli, Géza, zenész, Savanyú, Savanyú Location: Performance space
• Men Rush the Stage — Men rush the stage and fighting breaks out. Characters: Juli, Géza, zenész, Savanyú, Savanyú Location: Performance space
• Juli Provokes Another Clash — Juli's presence provokes another confrontation among the men. Characters: Juli, Savanyú, Savanyú, Géza, zenész Location: Performance space
• Savanyú Refuses Attack — Savanyú refuses to beat the men or turn the conflict into an attack. Characters: Savanyú, Savanyú, Juli Location: Performance space
• The Group Departs — The group leaves without resolving Juli's future or relationship. Characters: Juli, Savanyú, Savanyú, Géza, zenész Location: Road away from performance space
• Yearning in Music — Music and images of yearning close the story without clear escape. Characters: Juli, Juli, Géza, zenész Location: Unspecified final setting

Story Breakdown

• Remembered Family Life — Juli's recollection establishes the lost domestic world against which the later search for belonging is measured.
  • White Chair Request — The film opens with a request for a white chair so a young musician can play the cello.
  • Shared Meals and Music — Juli remembers when her family lived together, shared meals, and made music.
• Precarious Shelter — The young people attempt to build a communal home but are repeatedly displaced.
  • Empty Shack Homes — The group moves into empty shacks and tries to make them livable.
  • Forced Eviction — A police officer, residents, and neighbors drive the group away.
• Songs of Defiance — Music becomes the group's way to express freedom, frustration, and the pain of being judged.
  • Freedom in Song — Their performances express a longing for freedom beyond imposed rules.
  • Judged and Rejected — The songs also communicate frustration with social exclusion and hostile neighbors.
• Juli and Géza — Juli's attraction to Géza creates a possibility of emotional and intellectual escape from restrictive expectations.
  • Music Beyond Rules — Géza's music and ideas offer Juli a glimpse of a less confined life.
  • Connection Under Pressure — Their bond develops while work, uncertainty, and outside pressure limit their choices.
• Promises and Control — Savanyú and his friend use claims of obligation and prior support to influence Juli's future.
  • A Promised Future — They insist that Juli is already promised to another man.
  • Warning to Géza — Savanyú tells Géza to leave Juli alone, challenging their connection.
• Performance Erupts — Personal and social tensions finally become physical violence during a performance.
  • Stage Fight — Men rush the stage and fight while Juli's presence provokes further confrontation.
  • Refusal of Revenge — Savanyú rejects his companions' demand to beat the men and take Juli away.
• Unsettled Departure — The group leaves without resolving Juli's relationship with Géza or her future under social pressure.
  • The Group Leaves — Savanyú tells the others to leave, and the group departs after the conflict.
  • Yearning Remains — The film closes on music and images of longing rather than a clear escape.

Directed by

Márta Mészáros

Key Cast

• Jaroslava Schallerová — Juli
• Kati Sír — Juli (voice)
• Márk Zala — Savanyú
• Lajos Balázsovits — Géza, zenész
• Péter Blaskó — Zsiráf, Juli bátyja