(Winner of the Best Director Award to Vojtech Jasny and Special Mention for Technical Grand Prize at the 1969 Cannes Film Festival)
Told in the span of nearly 15 to 20 years following the end of World War II, the film revolves life in a small village as they go from this idyllic land of farmers and locals to a town that would be ravaged by communist ideals and leadership to the point of near-ruin. It’s a film that explores a village and the people living in this town adjust to these newfound changes but also to try and find some hope and joy no matter how dire things are. Vojtech Jasny’s screenplay is episodic in some respect as it breaks down from 1945 to 1958 with an epilogue set years later as it play into a village’s evolution and its outcome as it would venture into the modern world. Notably as the focus are on a group of people including farmers, locals, and those who would be these simple village people who gain power by joining the Communist party. The farmer Frantisek (Radoslav Brzobohaty) is one of several characters who encounter these changes as he’s just a simple man that likes to do his job and raise his family but the arrival of the Communist regime in 1948 starts this slow change for everyone. Notably as the lives of some of the villagers go through changes where deaths become more recurring as well as the growing disdain towards officials of the Communist party.
Jasny’s direction is definitely filled with rapturous imagery of the locations in Czechoslovakia in its farm land and rural areas as it plays into this world that is idyllic as the first chapter of the film presents this post-war world where peace is emerging despite the fact that two young boys find handguns and shoot at an old man with real bullets though he doesn’t get hit. It does play into this sense of foreshadowing of a world that is about to be undone by politics as farmers have to adjust to rules but also giving up their land to these political officials. Jasny uses a lot of wide and medium shots to play into the landscape in the different seasons they’re set in as each season and period play into a different mood but there are also these stylish slow-motion images that play into this sense of dread or death that is to come. There would be close-ups in some shots that Jasny uses as it relates to the widow Machacova (Drahomira Hofmanova) and the many relationships she has been in. The film’s third act play into the growing tension between Frantisek and the Communist officials as it shows the people also standing by Frantisek including the elderly.
Jasny does emphasize this sense of community as he’s always shooting crowds whether it’s at a gathering, a town meeting, or a funeral as they would get smaller when the film progresses. Even towards the end and its epilogue where the church’s old organist Ocenas (Vlastimil Brodsky) returns following a period of exile to see what had happened as he’s sort of the film’s narrator to see a village’s evolution. Notably in what it had become but also what was lost but also the people who lived in the village and those who remain. Overall, Jasny crafts a compelling and melancholic film about life in Czech village following the aftermath of World War II and the emergence of communism.
Cinematographer Jaroslav Kucera does excellent work with the film’s cinematography with its emphasis on natural lighting for many of the exterior scenes along with some low-key lighting for the interior scenes at night. Editor Miroslav Hajek does terrific work with the editing as it has some style in some slow-motion work in some bits of the film but also some jump-cuts to play into some of the action and humor. Production designer Karel Lier does brilliant work with the look of the homes of some of the villagers as well as the town hall building and the church where many of the villagers go to as it would evolve to showcase who are still here in the ongoing years.
Costume designer Ester Krumbachova does nice work with the costumes as it play into the evolution of the dresses the young women wear but also the suits of the Communist officials. The sound work of Dobroslav Sramek is superb as it play into the location and the way folk is played on location as its emphasis on naturalism is a highlight of the film. The film’s music by Svatopluk Havelka is amazing for its mixture of folk and orchestral music as it help play into the drama and humor as its soundtrack also feature waltzes and folk themes to play into the small town environment.
The film’s wonderful cast feature some notable small roles and appearances from Pavel Pavlovsky as a postman who becomes an official only to cause the ire of the locals, Josef Hlinomaz as a painter who likes to paint art including portraits of the locals, Ilja Prachar as the photographer Josef Plecmera who becomes a political official, Vaclav Lohnisky as a Communist party member who betrays his community, Vaclav Babka as a tailor who loses his business to the party, and Drahomira Hofmanova as the widow Machacova as a woman of immense beauty who marries multiple times only for the marriages to end tragically.
Vera Galatikova is fantastic as Frantisek’s wife who observes much of the chaos in communism as well as her husband’s struggle to maintain their farm. Waldemar Matsuka is superb as the peasant Zasinek as a man who copes with the death of wife back in World War II as well as the emergence of communism as he tries to hold on to his faith. Vladimir Mensik is excellent as the thief Jorka Pyrk who deals with the changing times that forces him to steal but also deals with the chaos of communism. Vlastimil Brodsky is brilliant as the church organist Ocenas as a man who leaves his role in the church to become an official only to exile himself from the village as he would return for the epilogue to see what the village had become. Finally, there’s Radoslav Brzobohaty as Frantisek as a farmer who is wary of communist rule as he deals with its drawbacks while defying them despite the tactics of the party towards other farmers as he also copes with the decisions he has to make to help them.
Vsichni dobri rodaci is a marvelous film from Vojtech Jasny. Featuring a great cast, lush visuals, a terrific music score, and its study of life in a village following the aftermath of World War II and into communist rule. The film is a captivating look into a period in the life of a village and its people as they deal with changing times as well as the outcome of its changes into the modern world. In the end, Vsichni dobri rodaci is a remarkable film from Vojtech Jasny.
© thevoid99 2021
Based on the novel by Bohumil Hrabal, Closely Watched Trains is the story of a young man working at a train station desperate to fall in love amidst the chaos of war and a growing resistance around him. Directed by Jiri Menzel and screenplay by Menzel and Hrabal, the film is a coming-of-age drama of sorts set during a tumultuous time in Czechoslovakia where a young man doesn’t just deal with his new job but also his own emotional and sexual desires. Starring Vaclav Neckar, Jitka Bendova, Josef Somr, Vlastimil Brodsky, and Vladimir Valenta. Closely Watched Trains is an engrossing and riveting film from Jiri Menzel.
The film follows the life of a newly-trained station guard who works at a train station during World War II German-occupied Czechoslovakia as he hopes to get laid as well as not endure real work amidst the chaos of the war that is miles and miles away from where he is. It’s a film that explore a young man trying to escape the realities of the world but is also hoping to experience love as he has a crush on a young conductor while he is surrounded by an eccentric group of people working at the station and other things happening around him. The film’s screenplay by Jiri Menzel and Bohumil Hrabal that is based on the latter’s novel does explore the world that Milos Hrma (Vaclav Neckar) is in as his boss (Vladimir Valenta) is hoping to be promoted but his station is filled with misfits including the dispatcher Hubicka (Josef Somr) who often surrounds himself with beautiful women as he would try to help Hrma in winning over the ladies. Yet, Hrma also copes with trying to impress the young conductor Masha (Jitka Bendova) but his job eventually starts to be demanding due to the plans of Nazi-sympathizer in the train company councilor Zednicek (Vlastimil Brodsky).
Menzel’s direction is largely straightforward in its compositions while it does have some flair of style as it is shot largely in Lodenice area in the Czech Republic. While there are some wide shots to establish the locations and the train station where Hrma works at, much of Menzel’s direction is intimate in its usage of close-ups and medium shots. Notably in the way Hrma would interact with various people coming and going at the station including the women that Hubicka would have for himself and other people at the station. Notably as Menzel captures the lack of activity that goes on at a station where the stationmaster tends to his pigeons than the station while everyone else is messing around including Hubicka imprinting rubber stamps on the station’s telegraphist Zdenicka (Jitka Zelenohorska) in an act of mutual flirtation. It is among some of the humorous moments in the film though there are also some dramatic moments as it play into Hrma’s sexual awakening and his desire to get laid.
Especially as Menzel maintains this eerie tone about what is happening as it relates to the war and Hrma’s lack of involvement as he comes from a family of misfits with his father preferring to lay on a sofa than work. Even as there’s a scene of a bomb falling nearby where he’s sleeping as he and another station employee deal with what is happening as Hubicka suggests about doing something as it relates to the growing tension between the Czechs and Nazis. The third act doesn’t just play into Hrma’s reluctant involvement in the Czech resistance but also his chance for manhood upon meeting a resistance agent as it would force him to understand who he is and find meaning in his life. Overall, Menzel crafts an engaging and whimsical film about the misadventures of a young train station guard in Nazi Germany-occupied Czechoslovakia.
Cinematographer Jaromir Sofr does brilliant work with the film’s black-and-white cinematography as it play into the gorgeous look of the daytime locations along with some stylish shots for a scene following a bombing and some interior low-key lighting for scenes set at night. Editor Jirina Lukesova does excellent work with the editing as it has some jump-cuts as well as straight cuts to play into the drama and some of the film’s humor. Art director Oldrich Bosak and set decorator Jiri Cvrcek do fantastic work with the look of the station as well as the home of the station master and the places that Hrma goes to.
Costume designer Olga Dimitrovova does nice work with the costumes including the uniform that Hrma wears as well as the ragged clothes including the prestigious uniform that the station manager is eager to wear. The sound work of Jiri Pavlik does superb work with the sound as it play into the sound of trains and some of the film’s natural moments as well as the sounds of bombs and explosions. The film’s music by Jiri Sust is wonderful for its orchestral-based score as it has some playful themes but also some lush string arrangements for some of the film’s somber moments.
The film’s terrific cast feature some notable small roles from director Jiri Menzel as a doctor diagnosing Hrma’s problems, Libuse Haveloka as the stationmaster’s wife, Nad’a Urbankova as a Czech resistance fighter, and Jitka Zelenohorska as the telegraphist Zdenicka whom Hubicka playfully flirts with as she enjoys his flirtation approach. Vladimir Valenta is superb as the stationmaster who is trying to run his station and hope to get a promotion while he tends to his pigeons. Jitka Bendova is fantastic as the conductor Masa as the object of affection for Hrma as she is eager to start a relationship with him while also doing her work.
Josef Somr is excellent as the train dispatcher Hubicka as a mischievous man who cares more about women than his work as he likes to have fun while guiding Hrma on how to woo women as well as wanting to stand up to the Nazis. Vlastimil Brodsky is brilliant as councilor Zednicek as a Nazi sympathizer who checks on the station as he sees great plans for the Germans but also puts down his own people as being inferior and need to improve themselves. Finally, there’s Vaclav Neckar in an amazing performance as Milos Hrma as a young man who becomes a train station guard as he deals with the boredom of his job and his growing appetite for sex as he’s eager to get laid while Neckar displays some of the uncertainty but also a growing awareness of what is happening around him.
Closely Watched Trains is an incredible film from Jiri Menzel. Featuring a great cast, a vibrant presentation, themes of growing up and understanding the idea of manhood, and a somber music score. It’s a fascinating coming-of-age film that explores the life of a young man working at a train station as he deals with not just his own sexual desires but also the world around him during a chaotic moment in time. In the end, Closely Watched Trains is a phenomenal film from Jiri Menzel.
Jiri Menzel Films: (Pearls of the Deep-The Death of Mr. Balthazar) – (Crime in a Music Hall) – (Capricious Summer) – (Larks on a String) – (Who Looks for Gold?) – (Seclusion Near a Forest) – (Those Wonderful Movie Cranks) – (Cutting It Short) – (The Snowdrop Festival) – (Chocolate Cop) – (My Sweet Little Village) – (End of Old Times) – (Beggar’s Opera) – (Life and Extraordinary Adventures of Private Ivan Chonkin) – (I Served the King of England) – (The Don Juans)
© thevoid99 2020
