Maratón [The Marathon] (Ivo Novák, 1968)
May
5
1945
Karla (Jana Brejchová) and Ruda (Jaromír Hanzlík). DP: Václav Hanuš.
Maratón [The Marathon] (Ivo Novák, 1968)
May
5
1945
Karla (Jana Brejchová) and Ruda (Jaromír Hanzlík). DP: Václav Hanuš.
Krakatit (Otakar Vávra, 1948)
Apr
26
International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day
A man on a darkened, concrete runway, running towards a man-made structure, a mirage. DP: Václav Hanuš.
Something nuclear on International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day
In a state of delirium, engineer Prokop chases his stolen chemical formula, worried it may be used for mass destruction
With the experience of yet another world war, and two devastating applications of science biggest terror, Karel Čapek's 1922 novel Krakatit [“Krakatoa”] anticipated and moulded the decades to come.
And R.U.R. is now, just around the corner.
“I cast my hat out into the universe, let it greet those who are on their way from Earth. From this day forward, the Moon is no longer a dream.”Baron Prášil [The Fabulous Baron Munchausen] (Karel Zeman, 1962)
Mar
14
Under the Skin – 2013
The Baron (Miloš Kopecký) on the Moon clinks glasses with Cyrano de Bergerac (Karel Höger) and several characters from Jules Verne's De la terre à la lune (1865). A baffled 20th century astronaut looks on. DP: Jiří Tarantík.
A weird of quirky sci-fi film on the date Under the Skin (2013) was released in the UK.
– Cyrano de Bergerac
Případ pro začínajícího kata [Case for a Rookie Hangman] (Pavel Juráček, 1970)
Jan
30
doors
In a completely dark room, a large silhouette of a man can be seen rushing through a brightly lit doorway. Other, impossible doors at odd heights show several people observing the man. Still via DVDBeaver. DP: Jan Kališ.
A gateway or door for Janus, god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames, and ending.
A man named Gulliver (Lubomír Kostelka) accidentally runs over a rabbit, who is dressed to the nines and carries a pocket watch. Slowly, the man finds himself in a sort of Wonderland.
“The Kinoautomat in the Czechoslovak Pavilion is a guaranteed hit of the World Exposition, and the Czechs should build a monument to the man who conceived the idea, Radúz Činčera.”Kinoautomat: Člověk a jeho dům [Kinoautomat / One Man and His House] (Ján Roháč, Radúz Činčera + Vladimír Svitáček, 1967)
Jan
10
Representation of the People Act 1918
The audience about to vote for one of two scenes, with two presenters on stage.. DP: Jaromír Šofr.
Voting, for the Representation of the People Act 1918, UK.
Made for the Czechoslovak Pavilion at #Expo67 in #Montréal, Kinoautomat was the world's first interactive film. During nine moments in the story, a moderator would appear on the stage, and ask the audience where the story should go now. Depending on the votes, one of two reels would play.
– The New Yorker
After its very successful performance at Expo 67, and a one year run in Prague, Kinoautomat was banned by the Czechoslovakian government.
Sedmi kontinent [Sedmý kontinent / The Seventh Continent] (Dušan Vukotić, 1966)
Dec
13
Francis Drake's circumnavigation
The first two children to set sail, with Iris Vrus on the right, and possibly Tomislav Pasarić on the left. DP: Karol Krška.
A voyage of discovery on the start of Francis Drake's circumnavigation. Children, ignored by their ever-busy parents, set sail to the Seventh Continent.
– You surely know that my financial support is unlimited. – Yes. Long live your false cheque factories!Tajemství hradu v Karpatech [The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians] (Oldřich Lipský, 1981)
Oct
27
1897
A calendar – undeniably designed by the great Jan Švankmajer – with the date October 27, 1897, set on the day of – or referencing a saint – Sabina. Screenshot via DVDBeaver. DP: Viktor Růžička.
Zahrada [The Garden] (Jan Švankmajer, 1968)
Oct
25
Jiří Hálek and Luděk Kopřiva as Josef and Frank. DP: Svatopluk Malý.
“The 17th of July. Comrade Anna is not lying!”Ucho [The Ear] (Karel Kachyňa, 1970)
Jul
17
Party member, and rather drunk, Anna (Jiřina Bohdalová) and her newspaper hat at the officials' party. DP: Josef Illík.
Ikarie XB 1 [Icarus XB 1] (Jindřich Polák, 1963)
Jun
26
An astronaut passing a perfectly symmetrical walkway, similar to the ones seen in Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). DP: Jan Kališ.