Discoveries from Czechoslovakia World Cinema

In Slovakia, they also created a pair of investigators who have appeared in several films. Volanie démonov is the third of them. The police officers, one Maigret-like, thoughtful, the other humorously hasty, this time solve a fire in a furniture factory and the deaths of two employees - one burned himself, the other fell into a dry well. The investigation of the complicated case takes a long time, but in the end it turns out that revenge can be extraordinarily strong and persistent.

The life on the poor Slovak hills, the lazy hills, where agriculture is at a primitive stage and where the shelves give a small harvest. Meanwhile, socialist industrialization is reaching an amazing boom in the valleys. Therefore, it is necessary to solve the problem of small farmers on poor farms and the lack of labor in ever-growing industrial enterprises. The film, based on the fate of Matěj Rendek, who returns to Slovakia after 18 years from America, and on the fate of his family, who have toiled for years on poor fields and slaved for a rich farmer, shows how this problem must be solved: an agricultural cooperative is established on the lazy hills, which, with the help of machines, can handle agricultural work better and with a significantly smaller number of laborers, and most of the lazy villagers leave to work at a large sawmill.

Mist on the Moors examines fates of just about a few people. Their stories are outlined in a short space of time and are a symbolic representation of the drama of life, struggle for justice, human cognizance and the healing power of love. One of the most important components of the film is the nature, which ceases to be a mere stage for its plot—it serves almost as an autonomous plot agent. The movie landscape is a precisely defined and localized one. Only the South Bohemian ponds can serve as the right environment for development of such earthy and typically human stories as we encounter in the Mist on the Moors.

Television film about people who are actively involved in the Slovak national uprising in 1944. A screen adaptation of the novel by Rudo Moritz in 1951.

A film in five episodes, all based on an attempt to show the life of young people today, their feelings and relationships, their behaviour in public and private life.

A car deliberately runs down a young man on a road by a small border town. The locals recognize the dead man as one of the students who were there on volunteer work some time before. The police detectives, Major Kalas (Rudolf Hrusínský) and Lieutenant Varga (Radoslav Brzobohatý) can then get on the trail of the people with whom the victim was involved, especially at the photographic studio headed by Bohuslav Pacer (Bohus Záhorský).

One of the few European films of the 30s to criticize the Nazis, even if they couldn't be directly named due to censorship: Gangsters with gray hats stir up trouble in what is obviously the Sudetenland.

The Karpísek married couple, both doctors, are leaving for London for two months on business. They entrust their five-year old son Jozánek to the care of their neighbor, Mrs Pokorná.

The poor shepherd boy Michal signs up for service at the royal castle as a gardener's apprentice. He soon learns his trade well, but he also learns the secret of Duke Rosemary's curse, which forces the three royal daughters to spend every night dancing and debauchery against their will. Everyone from the entire kingdom tries in vain to unravel the mystery of the worn-out slippers that the princesses have in their rooms every morning. So Michal sets out to fight the mystery.

A tale of neighbourly teasing and how dangerous it is to leave a door off its hinges in the hallway.

A worker steals bits and pieces of building materials from work to construct a new home for himself and his girlfriend. When he discovers that she’s having an affair with his boss, he devises one elaborate plot after another to murder the rival, each time with pathetic results.

Czechoslovak historical film about Saint Wenceslas. It was the most expensive Czech film to date, with the largest set constructed in Europe to accommodate an all-star cast of over a hundred, together with 1,000 extras for the lavish battle scenes.

This two-part production follows the lives of three generations of women from the Jablonczay family at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The first part begins in 1882 and focuses on the two older generations. The eldest, Maria (Emília Vášáryová), lives in a dead relationship with her husband Kálmán (Milan Kněžko). She is the mother of a son and three daughters, each of whom tries to cope with her despotic nature in different ways. In the second part, the youngest, third generation of characters enters the scene. Lenka (Zuzana Vačková) is first educated in a convent with the kind approach of the mother superior (Magda Vášáryová) and slowly gets to know the real world outside the convent and her strict family environment. The play is based on the novel by Hungarian prose writer Magda Szabó, originally titled "An Old-Fashioned Story," in which the author describes the family life of her own ancestors.

In 1947 by the Beskid mountains, the traces of war still linger, destroyed tanks dispersed throughout the farmland creating an eerie backdrop. This film follows a ten-year-old boy and the strange visions he encounters, his world of fantasy exacerbated with ample time, space, and a lack of companionship or guidance. We see the adults that influence and dominate his life, for better or for worse. Surreal and packed with an excellent study of human emotions and motivations compounded by their rural, isolated vacuum of a town, this is a timeless and severely underrated film from a brilliant Czech director.

The bank officer Bedrich Hroch is sent by the bank director to the zoo, which asked an allocation of one and half kg of gold for a gold tooth for a hippo. During the check up of the hippo's teeth Bedrich is swallowed by the hippo. The man does not die in the hippo's guts and he chats quite happily with his frightened wife Dása. Journalist Pip Karen, his friend is also present to the dialogue and he has immediately an idea how to use this special situation. He tells to the new minister Borovec and his opponent professor Fibinger that there is a hippo in the zoo which can speak. He also tells them how to use this situation for a political propaganda.

This is a romantic story about a brave, self-made girl, despised daughter of a shepherd. She is not afraid of anything - neither night nor swimming. But the superstitious villagers are telling weird stories about her and about all sorts of strange things, even her conjunction with the powers of hell.

The achievements of socialism must be protected by all means - and it can even be fun. The Svazarmov paratroopers convince the casual cooperative members that the military education of the population must not be underestimated; they simply carry out an ambush.

A story of love and honor that takes place during the mid-nineteenth century during revolutions, as well as economic, political, and social hypocrisy. Two extraordinary but lonely artists share a passionate love, as evidenced by the preserved letters that they exchanged.

Vlasta Burian appears in a town of Czarist Russia impersonating an Inspector General, and he is entertained lavishly by the local political-hacks and peasants seeking his favor for whatever they are advocating or need fixed. Burain is involved in a series of comical situations as he takes everything he can gets his hands on while the peasants, who must plead for the betterment of their conditions, are left on the outside-looking-in. He makes his escape just as the real Inspector General is set to appear, but those-in-need will be no better off when the real McCoy shows up then they were with Burian.

In the late 1980s, several films were made that wanted to come to terms with the crimes of Stalinism, but they did so with a very alibi - they basically communicate that it is enough to remove the erroneous deviation of the communist regime for this social system to become fully humane again. This also applies to the immediate post-war fates of former front-line fighters - one fought in the Soviet Red Army, another in the English Air Force, another was a soldier in the Slovak Army. The difficult character check will only be completed by the 20th Congress of Soviet Communists, which condemned recent blunders. The film was made based on a proposal by former Foreign Minister Bohuslav Chňoupek.

Several of the works of writer Bohumil Říha have been filmed. This novel by the pro-regime writer also inspired a children’s film, which was directed in 1981 by the experienced family filmmaker Václav Gajer. The story takes place in 1947 and it is based on the popular model of the relationship between a human hero and an indomitable animal protagonist. The tale of the freedom necessary for life, is, of course, beholden to the standards of the time: the Hucul horse that heals an old villager, has remained in the small village in Šumava after the Soviet soldiers have left. This is a pleasing movie that engages with the acting performance of Zdeněk Řehoř and the depiction of the indisputable beauty of the Šumava landscape as shot by cameraman Jan Němeček.

In a rare instance of literary adaptation, Chytilová was inspired by Franz Kafka’s writings. Mr. K stashes stolen jewelry away at home and seldom allows his wife to wear it. A nosy neighbour, Mr. B, drops in. A cat observes it all.

Two short stories by Karel Čintamani a ptáci An avid collector of carpets, MUDr. Vitásek discovers a unique piece in Mrs. Severýnová's junk shop - a Persian carpet with a pattern of birds. As a connoisseur, he knows that there are only three of these carpets in existence and they are all owned by different monarchs. Severyn has no idea how rare it is, but the carpet is not for sale. It was saved by the wealthy widow Zanelli, who travels all over the world and rarely visits Prague. Vitásek confides in his lawyer friend Bimbal and with his help tries to retrieve the rare piece. Tales of a marriage fraudster The police headquarters is on high alert as marriage frauds proliferate. The hallmark of the culprit is violin playing and gold teeth. Inspector Pigeon of the train service eventually apprehends the fraudster, Vincent Plichta. The serious criminal doesn't resist arrest, he just bills the costs and goes to serve his sentence. After a while, marriage fraud is reported again.

A crime story set in the second half of the 19th century. Krasl, a Prague schoolteacher, is searching for a statue of the Golden Buddha, which is supposed to contain compromising materials on the factory owner Riessig.

The fate of the insignificant poet Leonard Undene is transposed into the media atmosphere of the late 1960s. An ironic image of the times, a black comedy about the ease of manipulating the crowd, about the deceitfulness of slogans, about the phenomenon called public opinion, about the power of media fame...

Owners of all kinds of animals and birds, from puppies to sick calves and grasshoppers, come to the veterinary "hospital". They meet with the professionalism and helpfulness of the doctors and especially with the attending nurse Miluska, who finds a kind caress, a smile and help for every creature. She even gets the doctor to visit a sick grasshopper, which its rather stubborn owner left without treatment. There's a bit of loving reverie on Milushka's part, too, because she liked the young man who came with the mare. But it remained just a nice, if a bit silly dream, because the young man is married. But the daily reality overcomes that bit of sadness and Milushka remains faithful to her patients...

As unbelievable as it sounds, a stint in prison can really fix things. The old seasoned pickpocket will serve many years before he is released, but he comes out a changed man. He even dares to refuse the lures and threats of an all-powerful criminal gang to cooperate with him.

Lieutenant VB, disguised as a laborer, is looking for a young woman killer among the staff of a wheel loader. But which of the possible motives found is the right one?

This three-part Austrian/Czech comedy stretches the boundaries of what is considered to be humorous. Part one finds a silent film actor upset because of a rival actor's attention to the former's wife. When he kills his rival, it is only when he is strapped to the electric chair that he realizes that this is his last live scene. The second episode has the wife of an elderly British nobleman having an affair with the young gamekeeper of their estate. Part three finds a peasant woman taking a lover when her husband goes off to fight the war.

Chytilová was not allowed to direct films between 1969 and 1976. The sole exception was the made-for-TV film Kamarádi, now virtually unknown.

A group of saboteurs search for a weapons cache hidden by the Nazi army. Beskydy in the summer of 1950: the StB agent Borek infiltrates a group of saboteurs hidden in the Beskydy mountains. They are preparing terrorist actions against the ongoing collectivisation in the village. The group is led by Ervín Kopal and Metud Hanák. Borek is to make contact with them, secure the saboteurs and discover a weapons depot. After many dramatic events, the task is accomplished, but at the highest cost...

A character from a musical film falls into the real world in this short, predating similar films by Woody Allen (The Purple Rose of Cairo) and Wojciech Marczewski (Escape from the 'Liberty' Cinema).

A story about the life and troubles of young people living in the city. The teenagers have to face real life, make their first major decisions, and learn that romance sometimes brings disappointment.

A dramatic patrol car weekend on the streets of Prague's city centre. Lieutenant Josef Kabát and his colleagues drive through the centre of Prague every day in a patrol car. He loves his neighbourhood more than anything and wouldn't trade it for a more comfortable life in the office or at the control room. After a citizen calls the 158 emergency line, Kabát goes to various cases, be it accidents, thefts, disturbances or assaults. In one burglarized apartment, he finds the perpetrators' broken dioptric glasses and a torn piece of leather jacket. These are exactly the kind of things worn by his 18-year-old son Pavel, who coincidentally disappeared at the same time, allegedly with friends on a cottage holiday. However, Kabát has no time to deal with his family problems: there are too many thieves and shady characters roaming the streets of Prague. The worst of them are a couple of young men who have just raped and murdered an innocent girl...

A detective drama set just before the unification of our physical education system. Criminal investigators investigate the murder of a football club official, bribery, and manipulation of match results.

Elén, a girl living with her mother and stepfather in a secluded forest, has a great singing talent. On her twenty-first birthday, she runs away from home and on the train, millionaire René falls in love with her. Their paths soon diverge, only to be reunited soon after. Violinist Pavel Sedloň falls in love with Elén, and although Elén does not love him, she is determined to marry him. At that time, René dies, exhausted from working on the operetta Srdce v delirium. However, he is saved at the last moment and everything comes to a happy ending when Oldřich Nový explains how the authors actually meant it all.

A comedy about Simon, an honest, clever confectioner. In practical life, the humble bachelor becomes an easy prey to his boss, his mother, and hordes of women eager to get married. The story incorporates well-tested methods of nearly all major periods in the history of film comedy: from a lumierish etude with the garden hose to a melancholic tramp to the menace of the streets Jacques Tati. Director Juraj Herz made a major contribution to the modest tradition of Slovak film comedy.

The plot takes place in the revolutionary year of 1848. It takes us to Príbelice, where Janko Kráľ returns from Pest after the March Revolution, to acquaint the Slovak people with the famous Twelve Points, together with his friend, teacher Ján Rotarides. They were voted on at the last Hungarian Diet in Bratislava with the promise of freedom and equality for Slovaks.

A color puppet film based on the famous ballad of K. J. Erben "Aquarius".

The young generation is not very at peace with the morality of their parents. In a story set in a Moravian village, the otherwise contented cooperators indulge in stealing from the common property without seeing anything wrong with such actions. After being reprimanded by their own children, they first get angry but then become ashamed. The result is a late agitational comedy that no longer deals with the peasants' entry into the agricultural cooperative, but with the mores prevailing there. The ideologically mature youth act as a guarantee of a happy future.

The imperial councilor Ullik decides to modernize his old mills by installing a new turbine. His eccentric brother-in-law Artuš tries to prevent this, as the construction work disrupts the statics of the tower in which he lives. Ullik's older daughter Tynda is a talented singer. The bewitched girl secretly accepts the courtship of the virile Václav, the son of the night watchman. Her younger sister, the doctor Marie, wins the heart and hand of the astronomer Zouplna, despite her father's prohibition...

Second part of the trilogy. Vasek is expected to go to Bulgaria for a holiday with his parents during the summer vacation, but the boy finds the prospect of spending the summer with his gamekeeper grandfather far more tempting than the seaside. On the last day of school Vasek picks up his final report, but after that he takes his already packed bag and sets off for the Bohemian Forest without telling his parents. The grandfather is happy to have his grandson at his side again. In the evening, he gets a phone call from Vasek's mother. The trip to Bulgaria has been postponed and Vasek can stay with his grandfather for the time being.

Several big-city teenagers are falsely accused of vandalizing a valuable organ, casting light on the hypocrisy of the adult world.

A man was killed while trying to leave Czechoslovakia. One and a half kilograms of gold was found on him - not in coins, not in jewelry, not in bars - but in the form of plates used to make teeth...

It is 1905. The police director gets Jindrich Legenda (Eduard Cupák) shadowed as, yet Legenda had served his sentence for a burglary, the jewels have not been found. Russian revolution encouraged also Czech workers to fight for their rights. Radical anarchists are followed by Legenda's friend Karel Wohryzek (Vladimír Mensík) who was forced to collaborate with the police as he was convicted of pornography distribution.

Working in the city office is a bitter clerk who believes he has only 14 days to live and so he bravely stands up to his bureaucratic director.

A romantic story of a noble lady who wanted to live without the bonds of marriage, but her desire for a child led her - carefully disguised - into the arms of a young nobleman. Only years later did she believe in his love and make herself known.

Simon, called the Righteous, once saw a beautiful but sad girl behind a frosty window, whom he suddenly fell in love with and set out to search for her to the ends of the earth, where two noble sisters - Truth and Lie - ruled indistinguishable. But how do you find a girl whose name you don't even know where she lives? And can the Truth and the Lie help him if Simon doesn't recognize them? The beautiful queens pose obstacles to Simon, he can ask them three questions and he must find out which of them is telling the truth. However, before he succeeds in freeing the beautiful girl from the curse, he faces a series of trials...

A group of children is trying to solve a mystery related to the diamonds smuggling.