The event will also feature the Chicago premier of Ivan Passer’s short film A Boring Afternoon (Fádní odpoledne). Extras: It’s difficult to describe the rest of the plot of “Daisies” because there isn’t a coherent one. Nemec and Chytilova also contribute segments which are, respectively, bittersweet and utterly baffling. Of course, Communist state-run film programs have produced some of the greatest films of all-time, but what made the Czech New Wave so peculiar was its decidedly obstinate nature. Oh, do they eat, in scene after scene, and with increasingly poor manners (the men paying for the meals are hoping desperately to get laid, and forgive lapses in etiquette). A group of picnickers is accosted by a passing party of unidentifiable eccentrics who won’t grant them a moment’s peace. This series presents that title, along with five other crucial works that followed close on its heels, one from each of those filmmakers—some dazzlingly experimental, some arrestingly realistic, all singular expressions from a remarkable time and place, Includes:Pearls of the Deep, Daisies, A Report on the Party and Guests, Return of the Prodigal Son, .Capricious Summer, & The Joke, 1400 Inspiration Place SW “Daisies” is particularly difficult to assess since it shifts from color to B&W as well as other arbitrary visual changes, but it’s a fairly strong presentation with good image resolution. No frippery or padding here – just hit it and quit, as James Brown used to say. Though most of the New Wave directors were trained at FAMU, the state film school, the films they produced from about 1963 until the abrupt end of the Prague Spring in 1968 were anything but party propaganda. I suppose the source print wasn’t in great shape. The film culminates in a sequence in which the Maries sneak in early to a massive feast and decide to sample bits and pieces of every food item laid out on the sprawling table, and once they’re full they fling the food at each other. The set also includes two films I haven’t had a chance to see yet. Eclipse titles don’t have extras. Of all the cinematic New Waves that broke over the world in the 1960s, the one in Czechoslovakia was among the most fruitful, fascinating, and radical. “Pearls from the Deep” also has a few weak patches intermittently but is still better than “Summer.” The other films (I haven’t checked “Prodigal Son”) are generally in pretty good shape, though none are flawless. Anna catches the fancy of the men, each of whom deludes himself that the young beauty must be irresistibly drawn to their rugged charms. I didn’t cotton to this film until I had time to think about it afterward – now I think it’s some kind of masterpiece. Chytilova strikes a surrealist chord from the opening scene and never changes her tune; in one scene, the women snip off their heads and other body parts before putting them back together. Meanwhile Criterion dipped into some of the more famous films of the period like Loves of a Blonde, Closely Watched Trains, and The Shop on Main Street, but things get really interesting with the ir Pearls of the Czech New Wave box set under their Eclipse label. Forget about “Fight Club,” let’s say “Un Chien Andalou” but, no, not that either. This is definitely a mini-film education in a box. An air of menace overhangs the proceedings, always dangling the possibility that we could be retiring to the “Salo” estate at any time, but the threats remain largely unstated, which is Nemec’s point. Though no overt threat is made, the picnickers fall into order with shocking pliancy and are eager to laugh it all off when it’s revealed to be “just a joke” on the part of a nearby patrician who is celebrating his birthday. Evald Schorm, perhaps the least known of the filmmakers in this set, styles a beautiful, hilarious and occasional dark story of an outsider artist who is approached in his home by a pair of insurance salesmen. Six of the most influential Czech New Wave films in a single reasonably priced set certainly fit in with Eclipse’s mission to provide “simple, affordable editions” of “lost or overlooked” classic films. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The Czech New Wave was a an unlikely flowering that yielded a colorful and variegated bloom despite having its roots in seemingly infertile soil. Sunday, 12:00pm - 4:00pm, Library Hours: In “Pearls of the Deep” (1966), five directors each adapated separate short stories by the celebrated Czech author Bohumil Hrabal whose absurdist tales about everyday life in Czechoslovakia were perfect material for the aesthetic and ideological sensibilities of the budding New Wavers. I have a soft spot in my heart for films which hit the “happy zone” of a 70-80 minute running time, and “Prodigal Son” is the only single feature that doesn’t fit the mold (“Pearls” is longer, but consists of five segments). This series presents that title, along with five other crucial works that followed close on its heels, one from each of those filmmakers—some dazzlingly experimental, some arrestingly realistic, all singular expressions from a remarkable time and place. Unprepared for the mad(dening) designs inside the artist’s looking-glass home, they are overwhelmed and disoriented – as is the viewer in a most delightful manner. “The Joke” (1969) by Jires is an adaptation of Milan Kundera’s first novel, and tells the story of a politician who is expelled from the Party and “re-educated” as the result of a joking reference made to Trotsky. Daisies is an aesthetically and politically adventurous film that’s widely considered one of the great works of feminist cinema. Of all the cinematic New Waves that broke over the world in the 1960s, the one in Czechoslovakia was among the most fruitful, fascinating, and radical. A defining work was the 1966 omnibus film Pearls of the Deep, which introduced five of the movement’s essential voices: Věra Chytilová, Jaromil Jireš, Jiří Menzel, Jan Němec, and Evald Schorm. Mon-Sat, 9:30am - 4:00pm From the set, the weakest looking film by far is the interlaced transfer of “Capricious Summer” which has a lot of tiny specks and other signs of damage in the print, and generally looks a bit faded throughout – the colors across the spectrum are a bit wan and the image is soft in several scenes. The films are all presented in 1.33:1 aspect ratios. A meditation on aging and sex, shot in warm, sun-dappled color, Capricious Summer is one of the New Wave’s loveliest reveries. In Jan Němec’s surreal fable, a picnic is rudely transformed into a lesson in political hierarchy when a handful of mysterious authority figures show up. Believing the world to be “spoiled,” they embark on a series of pranks in which nothing—food, clothes, men, war—is taken seriously. Disc One includes “Pearls of the Deep.” Disc Two has “Daisies” and “A Report on the Party and Guests.” Disc Three stores “Capricious Summer” and “The Joke.” “Return of the Prodigal Son” stands alone on Disc Four. “Capricious Summer” (1968) was Menzel’s follow-up to his smash hit “Closely Watched Trains” and it doesn’t have much on the surface to do with the other films I’ve already discussed. Set Value: Tues- Sat, 9:30am - 4:00pm. I’m not exactly capable of assessing how clear the Czech dialogue is, but there was no noticeable damage or warping in any of the sound as far as I could tell. Phone: 319-362-8500, Museum Hours: Though working a similar vibe as Chytilova, Nemec shows the other end of the power struggle, or rather the lack thereof. Of course, Communist state-run film programs have produced some of the greatest films of all-time, but what made the Czech New Wave so peculiar was its decidedly obstinate nature. Though a significant liberalization of media enabled the Czech New Wave filmmakers to get their rabble-rousing films made in the first place, threats to the social order were still not going to make it to the big screen. Though most of the New Wave directors were trained at FAMU, the … A sudden rainstorm ushers in a change in their tranquilly dull existence in the form of a cut-rate magician (played by Menzel, whose magic tricks provide the only slightly surrealist touches in this otherwise realist film) and his gorgeous assistant Anna (Jana Drchalova). Indeed the students, who benefited from the ability to see films from around the world that were secreted from the Czechoslovakian public, set out intentionally to address the abuses of totalitarianism, and often rejected the realist strategies favored by Soviet-inspired education. At his party, of course, everyone assigned seating, and they go to great lengths to make sure they comply with the plan, apologizing profusely for any inconveniences their bumbling might cause. Optional English subtitles support the Czech audio. Video: They grab hold of them, coax them to walk into the woods, and order them to stand in a line or other seemingly random tasks: face this way, don’t cross that line. With a wicked sense of humor and a healthy streak of surrealism, a group of fearless directors—including eventual Oscar winners Miloš Forman and Ján Kadár—began to use film to speak out about the hypocrisy and absurdity of the Communist state. I will probably help nobody by describing it as “Celine and Julie Go Boating” meets “Fight Club,” so I won’t. To grossly oversimplify, the films in this new set from Eclipse (which focus on movies from the end of the Wave, 1966-1968) take power as their main theme, and demonstrate the ways in which individuals either resist or comply with it. This event celebrates the 50th anniversary of the release of the Czech New Wave’s “manifesto” film, Pearls of the Deep (Perličky na dne). Pearls of the Czech New Wave 4 DVD Set $ 69.95. The full range of what the Czech New Wave could do is evident in the 1966 anthology Pearls Of The Deep.Five directors—Věra Chytilová, Jaromi Jireš, Jiří Menzel, Jan Němec, and Evald Schorm—adapted short stories by Bohumil Hrabal, using styles that range from docu-drama to absurdism as a way of capturing how their countrymen live, love, suffer, and create. Cedar Rapids, IA 52404 The “Pearls of the Czech New Wave” symposium was the Chicago première of “A Boring Afternoon,” presenting the film together with the complete collection of Pearls of the Deep. Her two teenage protagonists, both named Marie (Jitka Cerhova and Ivana Karbanova), realize that the world is “spoiled” and decide they aren’t going to play by its rules anymore. I found this segment to be the highlight of the film, and I was reminded a bit of the more anarchic elements of Brian De Palma’s early films such as “Greetings” and “Hi, Mom!” Jaromil Jires, also a contender for least-known director here, finishes off with a more conventional and overtly political story about a young Czech man who has a fling with a teenage Gypsy girl that ends in an indeterminate state, and with a final shot that isn’t exactly poster material. With a wicked sense of humor and a healthy streak of surrealism, a group of fearless directors—including eventual Oscar winners Miloš Forman and Ján Kadár—began to use film to speak out about the hypocrisy and absurdity of the Communist state. Jaromil Jireš’s brilliant adaptation of Milan Kundera’s novel tells the fragmentary tale of a man expelled from the Communist Party because of a political joke. “Return of the Prodigal Son” (1967) by Schorm is described as a “raw psychological drama about an engineer unable to adjust to the world around him following his suicide attempt.” Which sounds like the polar opposite of Schorm’s whimsical and surreal segment in “Pearls from the Deep,” but I can’t really judge that. Made near the end of the Czech New Wave, The Joke is acknowledged as one of its greatest works. The set combines better-known works like “Daisies” with harder-to-find material such as “Capricious Summer” and “Return of the Prodigal Son.” The transfers aren’t pristine, but they’re all solid enough, and the liner notes provide an excellent guide through this crucial and absorbing selection of movies. We’re all conformists at heart, or at least most of us are (one character decides to leave the party thus causing… a problem), and all it takes is the appearance of power (that sexy, sexy power) to get the majority to fall into line.