Petr Cepek

  • Juraj Herz – Petrolejové lampy AKA Oil Lamps (1971)

    1971-1980Czech RepublicDramaJuraj Herz

    Czech filmmakers have several times been galvanised by the writings of Jaroslav Havlíček. The result in most cases was a film that merged the quality of the literary template and the personality of the particular filmmaker, whether it be Barbora Hlavsová (1942) directed by Martin Frič, Prokletí domu Hajnů (The Curse of the Hajns’ House, 1988) directed by Jiří Svoboda, or Jaromil Jireš’s Helimadoe (1992). However, the most famous adaptation of a Havlíček novel is the psychological drama Petrolejové lampy (Oil Lamps). The film is based on an eponymous novel first published in 1935 as Vyprahlé touhy (Parched Desires) and released again in 1944 following revisions and a change of title. The motion picture was made in 1971 according to a screenplay from Lubor Dohnal, Václav Šašek and Juraj Herz, the last of whom also directed the film.Read More »

  • Jan Svankmajer – Lekce Faust AKA Faust (1994)

    1991-2000AnimationArthouseCzech RepublicJan Svankmajer

    Quote:
    …Faust was originally intended as a production for the Laterna magika theatre. Svankmajer describes it as a “variety collage” in which elements from Marlowe, Goethe, Christian Dietrich Grabbe, Gounod and the Czech folk puppet play (Kopecky) are all framed by the reality of contemporary Prague… The films hero, an ordinary man in a dirty raincoat, lives in a rundown flat in Prague. Here (as in Conspirators of Pleasure), it is noticeable that Svankmajer avoids any exotic images of “tourist Prague”, preferring nondescript streets and down-at-heel cafes serving nauseous food… Like Alice Faust moves from scene to scene and from one world to another but, this time, also from text to text, with a time out for the occasional cigarette or glass of beer.Read More »

  • Frantisek Vlácil – Adelheid (1970)

    1961-1970ArthouseCzech RepublicDramaFrantisek Vlácil

    The first colour film by Czech master director František Vlácil ADELHEID is an emotional tale of two lovers trapped in the march of history.

    In the aftermath of WWII, a Czech airman returns home from his tour of duty with the British RAF, intending to claim a German factory located in the Sudetenland along the Czech-German border. There he meets the beautiful Adelheid, the former owner’s daughter who once lived in the estate but is now reduced to servitude. The Czech airman falls in love with Adelheid, but lingering resentment and bitter political strife stand in the way of their happiness. (-Second Run)Read More »

  • Václav Matejka – Nahota AKA Nudity (1970)

    1961-1970ArthouseCzech RepublicDramaVáclav Matejka

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    A young convict gets a few days off after a suicide attempt, so that he may regain his strength. He heads back to places closely linked to his youth, during which he gets acquainted with a lonely village teacher…. This film with the lead star Petr Čepek could not be shown in cinemas before the revolution due to the participation of Kristýna Hanzalové, the Czechoslovak Miss of 1969, who emigrated before the film’s premier. (official distributor’s text)Read More »

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