Online Film Screening: Zborov
06.03.2022 / 01:00
In commemoration of the birth anniversary of Czechoslovak founding father Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, the Embassy of the Czech Republic will present the online screening of the film Zborov, available for free in the US from March 6-8, 2022, through DAfilms. The war epic tells the story of the Battle of Zborov (in present-day Ukraine), which took place in July 1917. The battle, part of the Kerensky Offensive, was the first significant action of the Czechoslovak Legions on the Eastern Front and the only successful engagement of the failed Russian offensive. The film is in Czech with English subtitles.
Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk (March 7, 1850 - September 14, 1937) was a Czechoslovak politician, statesman, sociologist, and philosopher. He served as the first president of the Czechoslovak Republic.
Czechoslovak Legions - fought for the creation of Czechoslovakia and later battled the Bolsheviks.
Event Details:
Date: March 6-8, 2022 | ONLINE | ADMISSION FREE
The film is available between March 6 and March 8. It will be for free on US territory for 72 hours in all time zones.
The link for viewing on those dates will be: https://dafilms.com/film/10581-zborov. In order to watch the film for free, the short registration on DAFilms is required.
ABOUT THE FILM:
The film primarily focuses on two brothers working at an arms factory. One supports the Austrian monarchy, while the other advocates for liberation of his homeland. While one brother serves the Austrian military, the other flees to Russia joining a volunteer group of Czech soldiers fighting against the Austrian monarchy. The story questions how family ties are tested by conceptions of national identity and political ideologies. The film ultimately leaves open the question of what type of belonging, family, national, or political, has more power over these individuals.
(Directed by J. A. Holman and Jiří Slavíček, 1938, 112 min., Czech with English subtitles)
The film was based on a story by army general Rudolf Medek.
On October 28, 1938, the film was scheduled to premiere to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the founding of the Republic. It was ultimately released after the signing of the Munich Agreement. The Republic that wanted to celebrate its 20th anniversary with the film ceased to exist. The film was banned after the declaration of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia by the Nazis, being called “politically unacceptable” in the summer of 1939.