A love story that holds out happiness as a carrot dangled but never obtained. Too busy, but still lush with the loving work of director Jan Hrebejk
Hrebejk’s new film has collected Czech Lions for Best Actor for Jirí Schmitzer, Best Actress for Anna Geislerová and Best Supporting Actress for Jana Brejchová but apparently no new Lions for the director himself. Not that he needs more, having racked up three of the Czech Oscars for “Horem pádem” (“Up and Down”--2004), “Musíme si pomáhat” (“Divided We Fall”—2000) and “Sakali leta” (“Big Beat”--1993). The film re-unites the director with similarly awarded screenwriter Petr Jarchovský who also wrote the director’s three previous award winners.
The story, apparently inspired by the Robert Graves poem of the same name, is about a woman torn between two lives and two lovers. This occurs in the wake of an act of God in the form of a giant flood that plunges a small city in chaos.
Anna Geislerová adds a Czech Lion for Best Actress for this film to her other three wins as she plays troubled mom Marcela. Her husband Jarda (Roman Luknár) is a car thief trying to make a living after the flood has wiped out the commerce in the city where he and Marcela are raising their asthmatic son Kuba (Adam Misik) and his sister Lucina (Michaela Mrvikova). The two have an ecstatic love life but are tormented by the day-to-day pressures of Jarda’s hidden life.
When Marcela finally walks out she moves in with her mother (Jana Brejchová) and her whacko second husband Uncle Richie (Jirí Schmitzer—Lion for this film as well as “Bumerang”--1997). In the course of dealing with her new life with Uncle Richie she meets the noble Evzen Benes (Josef Abrhám), a wealthy heir living in Tuscany. Benes offers to care for her and her son and daughter. Although she goes with him she can not leave Jarda behind.
As in Robert Graves’ poem, Jarda “Flaunts vespertilian wing and cloven hoof; and soon will fetch her back.” As much as common sense, and common decency, tells her she should leave Jarda behind, she is drawn to him by an undeniable love.
The film alternates between the chop shop, abject poverty and dark messiness of her life with Jarda and the lush Garden of Eden that is life in Tuscany with Benes. Even as she lives with Benes he knows he will never have her completely but that is acceptable to him. He is content with his lot and grateful for the incredible wealth that seems to follow him like a lucky star.
Jan Hrebejk’s work is complex, there are about eight players who come in and out of scenes and the film threatens to self-destruct for lack of focus. In part this is because of the wealth of great supporting performances by all concerned. But the result is almost separate characters within an ensemble cast that seems to build in its own digressions.
This problem aside, the film is nothing if not a great little story with an ending that allows some food for thought afterwards. Supporting actor Jirí Schmitzer steals the show as Uncle Richie who is a walking microcosm of the good and bad in Marcela’s life. He is evil and good at the same time and, in the end, finds his place in a life. Marcela’s future is uncertain and the viewer is left to ponder what the fates have in store for her and, for that matter, for us all.
Directed by: Jan Hrebejk
Starring: Anna Geislerová, Roman Luknár, Jana Brejchová and Jirí Schmitzer
Release: June 13, 2008
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