writing - visual - misc - huh?
i haven't yet made time to sit down and write anything about the remarkable films of vera chytilová. these are impressive films, and very diverse in the offering. the audience reaction to the various films was testimony enough to the impressive range that chytilová held mastery over.
fruit of paradise (ovoce stromu rajskych jíme, 1969)
fruit of paradise was the first film of chytilová's that we saw during the recent retrospective. i had no idea what to expect from this filmmaker except for the blurbs that called her a surrealist and feminist who was very critical of politics.
this film definitely falls firmly in the surrealist camp. it is a play off of the adam and eve narrative, yet has many peculiar twists. many of the images from this film stuck with me regardless of how undecided i was about it. it is completely over the top and a bit heavy handed in its dealing with symbolism. but i still liked it for its visual beauty and pure strangeness. it was jarring to the senses, and the experience was welcome due to the odd characters, setting, and imagery.
ceiling (strop, 1961)
next in order was chytilová's graduation film (she attended czech film school). it draws on her experience as a fashion model, and is a scathing take on the fashion world. the lead character is moving into the world of fashion, and finds herself in the midst of surprising unpleasantness.
daisies (sedmikrásky, 1966)
ok, this is the film i'm really wanting to write about. daisies is easily one of my new favourite films. chytilová manages to capture the spirit of anarchy, as lived by the characters of blonde marie and brunette marie.
the narrative follows the maries on a serious of adventures in which they defy all the logic and authority surrounding them. there is so much fun in this film, and i find myself giddily excited over the ridiculousness of it all.
beyond the surrealism and anarchy there are bold political statements being made about czech society. one of the famed scenes involved our daring duo sloppily gorging on a feast they stumble upon - this takes place at a time when food was a controlled substance by the czech government. needless to say, chytilová caught much flack over this.
beyond the antics of the maries, this film is packed with great visuals and filmwork that leave you thrilled with what you just saw. anarchy has never been so much fun.
wolf chalet (vlcí bouda, 1987)
let's fast-forward twenty years to the mature chytilová. wolf chalet is her attempt at making a horror movie that is a thinly veiled commentary on the oppressiveness and manipulations of czech government. if you read it simply as a genre film it is completely absurd and quite funny. this film carries the cheesiness of a north american b-movie. the political commentary is well made, but entirely overhanded. if you don't get the politics in this one you should stop attending films.
tainted horseplay (kopytem sem, kopytem tam, 1988)
this is the most sombre of chytilová films i took in. it follows a group of actors (who all also have various day jobs) in their hedonist antics and the introduction of the aids virus.
tainted horseplay involved the help of the theatre group sklep who brought a lot of humour and comradery to the film. this makes the inevitable drama all the more painful. however, chytilová's heavy symbolism hinders this film, and makes certain scenes a bit silly when they could have allowed the excellent acting serve the drama.
i'm impressed with the visual style that chytilová and cinematographer (and husband) jaroslav kucera created in these films. while chytilová's irreverence and narrative techniques don't always succeed they are always compelling and sincere.
daisies is one of the only films i'd seriously like to acquire a copy of because it probably isn't the easiest film to rent and it is a rare film that i would rewatch repeatedly.
{October 20, 2003 06:30 PM}