The Revolt of Job

Jób and Róza adopt the orphaned boy Lackó, who is Christian. Because Jews were forbidden from adopting Christians, the couple has the adoption papers backdated to 1938. Jób gifts two calves for the boy, binding him to the family’s fate.

Lackó proves stubborn and unruly, resisting even in the orphanage. Jób interprets this defiance as a divine sign: a spark from one of the calves has marked him as the chosen one. The belief shapes the family’s sense of destiny from an early age.

Within the village's Jewish community, Jób's decision is met with disapproval. Rabbi Mandele accuses him of blasphemy for adopting a Christian child. The tension foreshadows the social pressures the family will face.

Lackó grows up unaware of God, curious about Sabbath rituals yet detached from belief. When Jób explains that God resides in all things, Lackó reluctantly joins neighbor Kati in frog hunting to appease his father. The seeds of faith mingle with everyday wonder.

A circus arrives and introduces cinema to the village for the first time with The Frozen Child. The screening triggers mixed emotions: some villagers are moved to tears, while others resent paying for distressing entertainment. Maid Ilka and farmhand Jani, stirred by the film, realize their feelings for each other and marry, blessed by the village priest.

Jób encounters Monk Günther, who begins teaching Lackó about religious ideas. Inspired, Jób prays fervently for his son. The episode deepens the family’s spiritual search and sense of belonging.

The next morning, rain falls, which Jób interprets as a sign of divine acknowledgement. The moment reinforces the belief that Lackó is under blessing. The family clings to this hope amid uncertain times.

Lackó contracts diphtheria, a disease that has claimed the lives of two of Jób's previous children. Desperate prayers from Jób and Róza accompany the illness, and the community hopes for a miracle. The illness tests the family’s faith and resilience.

Against the odds, Lackó recovers from the illness. The Jewish community greets the revival with gifts and support, seeing it as a blessing from above. The episode reinforces communal faith in divine favor.

As the family faces an inevitable separation, they prepare Lackó for being left behind. Jób presents his son with his father's knife during a farewell feast, a symbolic gesture of lineage and duty.

The next day, while Lackó is ill, Jób and Róza depart, leaving Lackó in the care of Ilka and Jani. The painted Star of David on their former home marks the family’s departure and the end of their life together.

Lackó's girlfriend Kati is deported from the village, and he confronts his parents who coldly reject him. The separation deepens his sense of abandonment and isolation.

Lackó witnesses the execution of deserters and the departure of his loved ones in cattle wagons. Jób urges him to stay behind and await the Messiah, a stark choice that tests his faith and resolve.

As the wagons depart, Lackó cries out for the Messiah and begins a solitary journey into an uncertain future. He moves away from the village, carrying the weight of all that has happened.