February 16-22, 2007
ON THE SUNNY SIDE
(NA SLUNEČNÍ STRANĚ)
Fri., Feb. 16 at 7 p.m.
One of the great masterpieces of early Czech sound cinema, this experimental
classic combines elements of Soviet montage, BuZuelian surrealism, and Czech
politics in this examination of a state home for children. The plot is
nominally about the arrival of new kids from a broken home, but this is just
a framework for a series of otherworldly tableaus, frightening set design,
and ahead-of-their-time camera angles that make the whole film an exercise
rich in symbolism and imagery. Directed by Vladislav Vančura,
Czechoslovakia, 1933, 35mm, 76 mins. With Jindřich Plachta, Václav Vydra,
Zdeňka Gräfová
THE STRIKE
(SIRÉNA)
Fri., Feb. 16 at 8:30 p.m.
The only Czech film to win the main prize at the Venice International Film
Festival, The Strike takes its story from real events in 1889 to depict a
mining family struggling with debt and alcoholism. Their problems grow as
the father is fired because of his connections with the unions, and the
strike takes its toll. A fascinating piece of Czech Communist ideology, the
film also possesses a sooty, blackened realism that is remarkable for the
post-WWII era. The film will be presented with English subtitles for the
first time in a newly struck print. Directed by Karel Steklý
Czechoslovakia, 1947, 35mm, 83 mins.
TONKA OF THE GALLOWS
(TONKA ŠIBENICE)
Sat., Feb. 17 at 7 p.m.
Originally shot as a silent film, sound was added later to make this
Czechoslovakia’s first sound film. Tonka stars the beautiful Ita Rina (the
lead in Erotikon) as a reluctant prostitute who volunteers to stay the night
in prison with a condemned man. But after this act of charity she is turned
away from the brothel, and viewed as a bad omen, as portrayed through Anton’
s vivid expressionist camerawork. With Ita Rina and Vera Baranovskaia.
Directed by Karel Anton, Czechoslovakia, 1930, 35mm, 84 mins. The film will
be presented in the original silent version with musical soundtrack and
French intertitles with English subtitles.
FROM SATURDAY TO SUNDAY
(ZE SOBOTY NA NEDĚLI)
Sat., Feb. 17 at 8:45 p.m.
Machatý, a master at conveying sexuality in Pre-Code cinema, makes his first
sound film a simple tale of a young woman attracted by the glamour of the
champagne set, only to find herself repulsed when she is offered money for
sex. Fleeing the scene she runs into a good-hearted workingman, whose simple
decency wins her over. Like Lang’s M, this is a fantastic example of a
silent director embracing sound and using it creatively, as Machatý does
with an innovative score by jazz great Jaroslav Ježek. Directed by Gustav
Machatý, Czechoslavakia, 1931, 35mm, 72 mins. With L. H. Struna, Magda
Maděrová
THE KREUTZER
(KREUZEROVA SONÁTA)
Sun., Feb. 18 at 2 p.m.
After several years in Hollywood working with Griffith and Von Stroheim,
Machatý returned to Czechoslovakia to direct his first feature film, The
Kreutzer Sonata. Based on the Tolstoy novel, the film recounts in flashback
the story of a wealthy man who confesses to killing his wife, while at the
same time denouncing the hypocrisy of contemporary society. Machatý employs
a flamboyant style reminiscent of Expressionism that he would later perfect
with Erotikon. Directed by Gustav Machatý, Czechoslovakia, 1926, 35mm, 95
mins. With Eva Byronová, Jan W. Speerger, Miroslav Paul. *Screening with
live piano accompaniment by David Drazen and the Czech titles will be read
aloud in English.
SUCH IS LIFE
(TAKOVÝ JE ŽIVOT)
Sun., Feb. 18 at 4:30 p.m.
Such is Life can best be summed up by its subtitle, “A Novel About Prague
Washerwomen.” Creating cinematic poetry from the poverty in the streets,
Junghans shot on location this story about a washerwoman, her no-good
husband, and her remarkable resilience in the face of tragedy. This is an
early precursor to the Czech realist tradition; imagine if Murnau had shot
Sunrise on location, and you have some idea of its beauty. With Vera
Baranovskaya, Theodor Pištěk. Directed by Karl Junghans, Czechoslovakia,
1929, 35mm, 73 mins. *Screening with live piano accompaniment by David
Drazen and the Czech titles will be read aloud in English.
THE RIVER
(ŘEKA)
Mon., Feb. 19 at 7 p.m.
With a tempo as unhurried and pleasant as the meandering stream of the
title, The River follows a young boy through several vignettes depicting his
love for a village girl, resulting in a furious battle with a fish, and a
brief misunderstanding. Yet while Rovenský paints this portrait of country
folk with bold strokes, the film never descends into parody, remaining a
gentle tribute to the simplicities and beauty of small town life. Directed
by Josef Rovenský, Czechoslovakia, 1934, 35mm, 88 mins. With Jarmila
Beránková, Václav Jalovec
CRISIS
(KRIZE)
Mon., Feb. 19 at 8:45 p.m.
An incredible document of the times, Herbert Kline (an American) worked with
Czech directors Alexander Hackenschmied (a.k.a. Sasha Hammid) and Hans
Burger to produce this documentary about the rise of Nazi fascism and its
threat to Czechoslovakia. Its immediacy remains startling even today; this
is no newsreel, but a desperate attempt to warn of a nation’s danger. It
premiered in New York City just two days before Czechoslovakia was occupied
by Germany. The film, his feature debut as co-director, was ultimitely a
reason for Hammid to emigrate to the United States where he became the
founder of American experimental cinema with his wife Maya Deren. In
English. Directed by Herbert Kline, Czechoslovakia, 1938, 71 mins.
HEAVE HO!
(HEJ RUP!)
Tues., Feb. 20 at 7 p.m.
Thurs., Feb. 22 at 9 p.m.
Bearing more than a passing resemblance to Renoir’s Popular Front films,
this film is a rarely seen combination of socialist comment and riotous
laughter; imagine the Marx brothers taking their name politically and you
have some idea of the joys of Heave Ho!. Generally considered one of the
best cinema outings by famous slapstick duo of Voskovec and Werich, the plot
concerns an industrialist and labor organizer working together to create
their own socialist nirvana. The auteur duo of Voskovec and Werich spent the
WWII years in political exile in America. After the war Werich returned to
Czechoslovakia while Voskovec stayed in New York. Voskovec became one of the
stars of Sidney Lumet’s acclaimed film 12 Angry Men. Sadly the Communist
regime never allowed for the influential artistic duo to reconnect. With
Jiří Voskovec, Jan Werich. Directed by Martin Frič, Czechoslovakia, 1934,
35mm, 87 mins.
VIRGINITY
(PANENSTVÍ)
Tues., Feb. 20 at 8:45 p.m.
A shimmering tragedy in the Hollywood mold, Virginity concerns a beautiful
young woman prepared to sell herself into marriage to obtain money for her
dying lover’s treatment, while the camera tracks through gaudy nightclubs
and overstuffed apartments. This is one of the first films by the great
Vávra, a leading fixture in Czech cinema who, at the age of 95 is still
directing films! With Lída Baarová, Ladislav Boháč. Directed by Otakar
Vávra, Czechoslovakia, 1937, 35mm, 84 mins.
FAITHLESS MARIJKA
(MARIJKA NEVĚRNICE)
Wed., Feb. 21 at 7 p.m.
A breathtaking drama about life lived on the edge of civilization, Faithless
Marijka takes place in mountain solitude where a young woodcutter must
journey into the woods, leaving his young wife with another man. The film
was shot in the Carpathian mountains of the Western Ukraine, using local
people as actors against the striking vistas, and also features a score by
prominent Czech composer Bohuslav Martinů a long-time New Yorker himself.
With Anna Škelebejová, Petro Birčak. Directed by Vladislav Vančura,
Czechoslovakia, 1934, 35mm, 76 mins. In Czech, Ruthinian, Slovak and
Yiddish with English subtitles. New print
THE DISTANT JOURNEY
(DALEKÁ CESTA)
Wed., Feb. 21 at 8:30 p.m.
Thurs., Feb. 22 at 7 p.m.
Confronting the horrors of history head on, Radok and his crew shot this
first feature film about the Holocaust just three years after the war ended.
The film combines actual footage with reenactments and Expressionist camera
setups to create a vivid, immediate look at the concentration camps. With
Blanka Waleská, Otomar Krejča. “Audacious and grotesque, the movie looks
back to Caligari and forward to the unsettling puppet animation of Jan
Švankmajer.” -J. Hoberman. Directed by Alfred Radok, Czechoslovakia, 1949,
35mm, 103 mins.
Czech Modernism was produced and co-curated by Irena Kovarova for
BAMcinématek and National Gallery of Art. Film prints provided by National
Film Archive and Anthology Film Archive. Additional support provided by the
Czech Center New York. Film notes BAM and Irena Kovarova.