This is one of the two most famous Czechoslovakian films that got made during the Czech New Wave. The other being Shop on Main Street (Obchod Na Korze), which is primarily a Slovakian production. This, however, is more of a Czech film, and the director, Jirí Menzel, is probably one of the five most famous Czech film directors/actors of all time. This of course has hardly any significant to most of the world, but seeing as it's right next door to where I grew up, it tends to a hold a lot of bearing with me. Some of Menzel's other famous films from this era include Capricious Summer (Rozmarné léto) and Crime in the Night Club (Zlocin v santánu). Recently he directed I Served the King of England (Obsluhoval jsem anglického krále), which is a film adapted from a novel by Bohumil Hrabal, who also wrote the source material for Closely Watched Trains.
This one is quite famous for its innovation and dark humor, as well as for the amount of sexuality displayed throughout. The 60s and early through mid 70s were a time of....sexual revolution? I'm not sure if that's the right word, but people began treating sex with a hell of a lot more openness. In fact, it makes the 70s in the United States seem dull in comparison. This won the best foreign film oscar, although I think it is quite overrated amongst "film people", who don't appreciate what it's really trying to express. It has extreme anti-fascist messages that were bold for its time, and the conclusion is also quite bold for the time. I don't think if it was made now that it would garner much acclaim, but just the fact that it was made during an important time in Czech history is enough. This will like most of my posts fall upon deaf ears, but I think anyone who reads this will likely have learned something, at least.
This one is quite famous for its innovation and dark humor, as well as for the amount of sexuality displayed throughout. The 60s and early through mid 70s were a time of....sexual revolution? I'm not sure if that's the right word, but people began treating sex with a hell of a lot more openness. In fact, it makes the 70s in the United States seem dull in comparison. This won the best foreign film oscar, although I think it is quite overrated amongst "film people", who don't appreciate what it's really trying to express. It has extreme anti-fascist messages that were bold for its time, and the conclusion is also quite bold for the time. I don't think if it was made now that it would garner much acclaim, but just the fact that it was made during an important time in Czech history is enough. This will like most of my posts fall upon deaf ears, but I think anyone who reads this will likely have learned something, at least.
