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MILOŠ FORMAN Peter Hames the Most Obvious Antecedents of The
standards of Loves of a Blonde, Olmi‟s work is much more obviously manipulative and might almost be described as self-indulgent. 4 Cinéma vérité is clearly a movement that influenced the Czechs. Besides the group, it left its mark on the early films of Schorm, Jireš, and Chytilová. In Jaroslav MILOŠ FORMAN Boček‟s view, the use of cinéma vérité techniques to come to grips with social reality Peter Hames provided an experience of authenticity that left deep traces on the members of the Czechoslovak “new wave.” It penetrated not The most obvious antecedents of the work of Forman, Passer, and Papoušek, who only into their experience as film makers but also into their minds. Contrary to the can be argued to have developed their own characteristic group style, were Italian members of the French “nouvelle vague,” they did not wrap themselves up in Neorealism and cinéma vérité. Their early films were concerned with the “recording” subjectivity and intimacy even later, but polarised the relation between the subjective or “exposing” of everyday reality rather than the expression of a personal vision. and the objective world, subdued the tension between the individual and society, Miloš Forman has said: “Many years ago people used to say „that‟s like in a film,‟ between man and history.2 meaning that it was incredible; later they said: „He filmed it marvellously,‟ meaning that someone hoodwinked the others, and now a third phrase is being used when It is not entirely clear what Boček means. It is certainly true that whatever the film-makers want spectators to believe what they see on the screen.” He clarified style adopted, nearly all the films of the Czechoslovak New Wave were concerned their program when he said that he was interested in “the life, problems, joys, and with both the individual and society. -
Jiří Menzel Ostre Sledované Vlaky/ Closely Watched Trains 1966 93
October 16, 2007 (XV:8) Jií Menzel Ostre sledované vlaky/ Closely Watched Trains 1966 93 minutes Directed by Jií Menzel Written by Bohumil Hrabal (also novel), Jirí Menzel Produced by Zdenek Oves and Carlo Ponti Original Music by Jirí Sust Cinematography by Jaromír Sofr Film Editing by Jirina Lukesová Václav Neckár... Trainee Milos Hrma Josef Somr...Train dispatcher Hubicka Vlastimil Brodsk...Counselor Zednicek Vladimír Valenta...Stationmaster Max Alois Vachek...Novak Ferdinand Kruta... Masa's Uncle Noneman Jitka Bendová...Conducteress Masa Jitka Zelenohorská...Zdenka Nada Urbánková...Victoria Freie Libuse Havelková...Max's wife Kveta Fialová...The countess Pavla Marsálková...Mother Milada Jezková...Zdenka's mother Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film JIÍ MENZEL (23 February 1938, Prague, Czechoslovakia) has directed 26 films and acted in many more. Some of the films he directed are Obsluhoval jsem anglického krále/ I Served the King of England (2006), Zebrácká opera/The Beggar’s Opera (1991), Konec starych casu/The End of Old Times (1989), Postriziny/Cutting it Short (1981), Promeny krajiny/Altered Landscapes (1974), Zlocin v dívcí skole/Crime at the Girls School (1965), and Domy z panelu/Prefabricated Houses (1960). from World Film Directors, Vol. II. Ed. John Wakeman. The H.W. Wilson Company NY 1988 Jií Menzel (February 12, 1938— ), Czech film and theatre director, scenarist, and actor, was born in Prague. He is the son of Josef Menzel, a journalist who became a children’s author and then turned to writing scripts for puppet -
Stony Brook University
SSStttooonnnyyy BBBrrrooooookkk UUUnnniiivvveeerrrsssiiitttyyy The official electronic file of this thesis or dissertation is maintained by the University Libraries on behalf of The Graduate School at Stony Brook University. ©©© AAAllllll RRRiiiggghhhtttsss RRReeessseeerrrvvveeeddd bbbyyy AAAuuuttthhhooorrr... Communism with Its Clothes Off: Eastern European Film Comedy and the Grotesque A Dissertation Presented by Lilla T!ke to The Graduate School in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Comparative Literature Stony Brook University May 2010 Copyright by Lilla T!ke 2010 Stony Brook University The Graduate School Lilla T!ke We, the dissertation committee for the above candidate for the Doctor of Philosophy degree, hereby recommend acceptance of this dissertation. E. Ann Kaplan, Distinguished Professor, English and Comparative Literary and Cultural Studies, Dissertation Director Krin Gabbard, Professor, Comparative Literary and Cultural Studies, Chairperson of Defense Robert Harvey, Professor, Comparative Literary and Cultural Studies and European Languages Sandy Petrey, Professor, Comparative Literary and Cultural Studies and European Languages Katie Trumpener, Professor, Comparative Literature and English, Yale University Outside Reader This dissertation is accepted by the Graduate School Lawrence Martin Dean of the Graduate School ii Abstract of the Dissertation Communism with Its Clothes Off: Eastern European Film Comedy and the Grotesque by Lilla T!ke Doctor of Philosophy in Comparative Literature Stony Brook University 2010 The dissertation examines the legacies of grotesque comedy in the cinemas of Eastern Europe. The absolute non-seriousness that characterized grotesque realism became a successful and relatively safe way to talk about the absurdities and the failures of the communist system. This modality, however, was not exclusive to the communist era but stretched back to the Austro-Hungarian era and forward into the Postcommunist times. -
Film Soleil 28/9/05 3:35 Pm Page 2 Film Soleil 28/9/05 3:35 Pm Page 3
Film Soleil 28/9/05 3:35 pm Page 2 Film Soleil 28/9/05 3:35 pm Page 3 Film Soleil D.K. Holm www.pocketessentials.com This edition published in Great Britain 2005 by Pocket Essentials P.O.Box 394, Harpenden, Herts, AL5 1XJ, UK Distributed in the USA by Trafalgar Square Publishing P.O.Box 257, Howe Hill Road, North Pomfret, Vermont 05053 © D.K.Holm 2005 The right of D.K.Holm to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may beliable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The book is sold subject tothe condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated, without the publisher’s prior consent, in anyform, binding or cover other than in which it is published, and without similar condi-tions, including this condition being imposed on the subsequent publication. A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN 1–904048–50–1 2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1 Book typeset by Avocet Typeset, Chilton, Aylesbury, Bucks Printed and bound by Cox & Wyman, Reading, Berkshire Film Soleil 28/9/05 3:35 pm Page 5 Acknowledgements There is nothing -
Ward, Kenneth (2017) Taking the New Wave out of Isolation: Humour and Tragedy of the Czechoslovak New Wave and Post-Communist Czech Cinema
Ward, Kenneth (2017) Taking the new wave out of isolation: humour and tragedy of the Czechoslovak new wave and post-communist Czech cinema. MPhil(R) thesis. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/8441/ Copyright and moral rights for this work are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This work cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Enlighten:Theses http://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] TAKING THE NEW WAVE OUT OF ISOLATION: HUMOUR AND TRAGEDY OF THE CZECHOSLOVAK NEW WAVE AND POST-COMMUNIST CZECH CINEMA KENNETH WARD CONTENTS Introduction 2-40 Theoretical Approach 2 Crossing Over: Art Films That Could Reach the Whole World 7 Subversive Strand 10 Tromp L’oeil and the Darkly Comic 13 Attacking Aesthetics: Disruption Over Destruction 24 Normalization and Czech Cunning 28 History Repeats Itself: An Interminable Terminus 32 Doubling as Oppressor 36 Chapter One: Undercurrents and the Czechoslovak New Wave 41-64 Compliance and Defiance 41 A Passion for Diversion 45 People Make the System 52 Rebels Without a Cause 56 Summary 64 Chapter Two: A Very Willing Puppet 65-91 On the Cusp of a Wave 65 A Madman’s Logic 67 Mask of Objectivity -
Czech Surrealism and Czech New Wave Realism
Czech Surrealism and Czech New Wave Realism By Alison Frank Fall 2011 Issue of KINEMA CZECH SURREALISM AND CZECH NEW WAVE REALISM: THE IMPORTANCE OF OBJECTS Abstract This article examines a major difference between French and Czech Surrealism as exemplified by their attitudes to film. It engages in a close analysis of three films by documentary-influenced Czech New Wavedirectors whom the Prague Surrealist group admired: Miloš Forman, Ivan Passer and Jan Němec. The analysis focuses on the way in which objects in these films can take on multiple meanings depending on their context. It concludes that such objects suggest a broadening of possibilities in everyday life and in this respect correspond to both Surrealist goals and to the experience of living in a society in the process of political liberalization. The Paris Surrealist group’s favourite Czech New Wave film was Věra Chytilová’s highly experimental Sed- mikrásky (Daisies, 1966); the Prague group, by contrast, preferred the documentary-style approach of Miloš Forman and Ivan Passer (Král 2002: 9). The Prague Surrealists also extended their praise to the somewhat less realistic films of Jan Němec, but only insofar as their’onirisme inclut […] un sens des réalités crus/their oneirism included […] a sense of raw reality’ (Král 2002: 9). This difference of opinion between the Paris and Prague Surrealist groups points to a more profound divergence in their cultural and historical origins. In this article I will begin by exploring this divergence and go on to explain how it influenced the Prague group’s attitude to cinema. I will then examine one film by each of the three directors that the Prague group singled out for praise: Miloš Forman’s Lásky jedné plavovlásky (Loves of a Blonde, 1965), Ivan Passer’s Intimní osvětlení (Intimate Lighting, 1965) and Jan Němec’s O slavnosti a hostech (The Party and the Guests, 1966). -
The Czech New Wave and Pseudo Cinéma Vérité
The Czech New Wave and Pseudo Cinéma Vérité: Techniques Used by The Forman Group to Create RealisticLooking Films by Ava Burnham The Czech New Wave was a film movement that occurred in Czechoslovakia in the 1960s – a time when the country was under communist rule. The government was stringent in many ways and filmmakers were required to keep their films within the socialistrealist tradition, glorifying the government and its communist values. To ensure this, communist authorities would censor films to verify that their content was appropriate and in accordance with these principles. However, several filmmakers during the time, such as Miloš Forman, Ivan Passer, and Jaroslav Papoušek of the Forman Group, looked for ways to make films that were critical of the communist society while appearing not to violate censorship guidelines. To do this, the Forman Group used a cinéma vérité approach to filmmaking, attempting to make their films appear to be capturing life as it is without much directorial input. Peter Hames, author of The Czechoslovak New Wave, quotes filmtheorist Stephen Mamber’s definition cinémaverité as “the act of filming real people in uncontrolled situations. Uncontrolled means that the filmmaker does not function as a “director” nor, for that matter, as a screenwriter.” (Hames, 106) Although the actors in the Forman Group films are directed and scripted to some degree, the Forman Group strove to use cinémavérité techniques to make their films feel more like real life (Hames, 106). 1 Four films created during this time that exemplify this cinéma verité style are Competition (Miloš Forman, 1963), Loves of a Blonde (Miloš Forman, 1966), Intimate Lighting (Ivan Passer, 1969), and The Firemen’s Ball (Miloš Forman, 1968). -
Hallelujah for Prague : an American Orbis Picta Gerald O'grady
Hallelujah for Prague : An American Orbis Picta Gerald O'Grady "And your own life, while it's happening to you never has any atmosphere until it's a memory." Andy Warhol(a), America (New York: Harper & Row, 1985), p. 8 . It was in November, 1968 that Miles Glaser telephoned me at The Media Center having another person's organs providing their central functions, and how they which I had established at 3512 Mount Vernon Street in Houston under the integrated these different physical parts into a psychic unity. Although he and his patronage of John and Dominique de Menil, and asked if I would be interested in colleagues always acted with the greatest discretion, mentioning no names and screening a film about which he briefly described the conditions of production. I met simply sketching outsituational details, itwasthrough them that I learned, anecdotally, him and Jan Nemec for the first time a few hours later, and Oratorio for Prague was about a few of the somewhat bizarre circumstances which surrounded those efforts screened on November 15, together with Nemec's Report on the Party and the on the operating table which were making international headlines. It involved how Guests, a political parable about a group of people who, for reasons ranging from ordinary people would act when survival was at stake . opportunism to sheer terror, are members of a party they have no desire to join in . Those eligible for heart transplants would move into motels surrounding the Nemec, with Glaser acting as producer, had made a documentary about the hospital, such as Tides II across North Main Street . -
Karlovy Vary 2008
Karlovy Vary 2008 By Ron Holloway Fall 2008 Issue of KINEMA KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2008 A Festival for Independents One glance at the line-ups of the top A-category competition film festivals, and you can rate and measure – even criticize – them for their respective portfolios carried proudly on their backs. Cannes is honoured as an authentic ”auteur festival,” respected each May for discovering new directorial talent while furthering the careers of past auteur directors even when they are evidently over the hill. Venice, praised as a ”director’s haven,” scores among veteran festivaliers as a laid-back September rendezvous for cult directors at the end of summer, a must for cineastes. Berlin likes to promote its ”Hollywood image,” using its February dates to book as many box-office hits of the previous Christmas season as slots will allow, knowing full wellthatLA producers easily benefit from a Berlinale festival launch before their films hit the lucrative German screens. So what is Karlovy Vary best known for? Scheduled in early July, the 43rd Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (4-12 July 2008), under the dual leadership of Jií Bartoška (president) and Eva Zaoralová (artistic director), has developed in recent years into a unique ”platform for independents,” a summer festival in a renown spa that is particularly proud of its links to Sundance and Tribeca in the United States, Sochi in Russia, and Pusan in Korea. Indeed, for young Czech and Slovak backpackers pilgering annually to KVIFF, the core of the festival fare has always been the popular Forum of Independents section, programmed for over a decade by Stefan Ulrik, a Czech TV reporter. -
LESSON 1 the Czech Cinema Before and During the 2Nd World War
LESSON 1 The Czech Cinema before and during the 2nd World War > # Jan Kříženecký: > # The first documentaries: The Fire-Engine Goes to the Fire (1898), St. John´s > # Fair in a Czechoslovak Village, Žofin´s Spa, The Festive Inauguration of > Franz > # Josef´s Bridge (1901), The Festive Inauguration of the Exhibition Dedicated > to > # the Anniverary of the Chamber of Trade, From the Festive Inauguraton of > Čech´s > # Bridge (1908) > # The first fiction short films: A Date in the Grinding Room, Biřtlář´s > Accident, > # Laugh and Cry (1898) > # > # Jan Arnold Palouš: Night Fright (1914) (adaptation of an oriental fairy tale, > # the first Czech „horror“) > # > # Karel Degl: Prague 1917 (1917), Prague Newsreel (1919), The Church Master > # Builder (1919) > # > # Jan S. Kolár: Polykarp´s (Rudi´s) Winter Adventure (1917) (the first Czech > # comedy series; Rudi / Polykarp – the first Czech grotesque comedy character), > # Arrival From the Dark (1921) (the first Czech attempt in the field of the dark > / > # SF thriller and the first Czech film that was successful abroad; the first > # influence of the German Expressionism on the Czech cinema). > # > # Svatopluk Innemann: The Lights of Prague (1928) > # > # Karel Anton: Tonka – a Girl For Gallows (1930 – the social thematic dimension > of > # the Czech silent film; sound was added later to the initially silent film; > Ita > # Rina) > # > # Gustav Machatý: Kreutzer´s Sonata (1926), Erotikon (1929 – Ita Rina), Extase > # (1931 – the first Czech talked / sound film), From Saturday to Sunday (1931 -
Czech Film After 1989
Czech Film After 1989 By Jiří Voráč Spring 1997 Issue of KINEMA CZECH FILM AFTER 1989: THE WAVE OF THE YOUNG NEWCOMERS THE history of Czech cinema has been frequently marked and stigmatized, more than the non- industrial and more individual art disciplines, by large historical social upheavals which the Czech lands experienced in this century. During its hundred-year-long history, the Czech film survived five different social systems. Its origins (the first films on the Czech soil were presented by Jan Kříženecký in 1898) are rooted in theeraof Austro-Hungarian Empire. After the First World War, it continued its development in a free and democratic Czechoslovak Republic which was after two decades destroyed by the Nazi Germany. A fundamental systemic change occurred in 1945 when the Czechoslovak film was nationalized i.e., that the state (and after 1948 the Communist establishment) completely controlled all film activities in the entire country.(1) After the demise of the Communist dictatorship in 1989, a democratic regime was reestablished and with it the market economy; the film production was privatized and returned to the hands of private producers and distributors.(2) This dependency of the Czech film production on external conditions which were preventing the natural, continuous and intrinsic development of the film art was intensified by a specifically Czech cultural tradition which often preferred the social and educational function of art over its aesthetic function. In critical periods of Czech history, culture and art became a major tool of resistance against national or political oppression. Under such circumstances, the cultural life was actually the only remaining outlet and assumed various functions of the political life which was unable to evolve normally. -
Ten Movements That Shook the Film World
TEN MOVEMENTS THAT SHOOK THE FILM WORLD Week 1 GERMAN EXPRESSIONISM Week 2 DOGME 95 Week 3 ITALIAN NEO-REALISM Week 4 1930S BRITISH DOCUMENTARY MOVEMENT Week 5 CZECH NEW WAVE Week 6 RUSSIAN MONTAGE Week 7 NEW GERMAN CINEMA Week 8 FRENCH NEW WAVE Week 9 THE POLISH SCHOOL Week 10 NEW HOLLYWOOD From www.Movementsinfilm.com GERMAN EXPRESSIONISM GERMANY (EST. 1919 - 1931) As the name suggests, German expressionist filmmakers used visual distortion and hyper-expressive performance to show inner turmoils, fears and desires of that era. German Expressionism reflects the inner conflicts of its 1920s German audience by giving their woes an inescapably external presence. By rejecting cinematic realism, expressionist films showcase dramatic, revolutionary interpretations of the human conDition. How German Expressionism began In 1916, the German government deciDeD to ban all foreign films. With a suDDen demanD for more domestic titles, there was an understandably dramatic increase in the number of films produced in Germany each year. However, German auDiences haD become less preferential towarDs romance and action flicks since the beginning of WWI, and themes of violence, cruelty and betrayal become more relevant topics for Discussion. This unfortunate set of circumstances, along with the constant fear of hyperinflation, proviDeD a platform for daring, innovative filmmakers such as Fritz Lang (Metropolis) anD F.W. Murnau (Nosferatu) to make German Expressionism one of the most important anD influential movements in cinematic history. "I am profoundly fascinated by cruelty, fear, horror and death. My films show my preoccupation with violence, the pathology of violence." - Fritz Lang Unlike most other cinematic movements, Expressionism doesn't solely belong to filmmaking, and existed prior to the invention of cinema.