Film Forum

Czechoslovakia, 1965
Directed by Miloš Forman
Starring Hana Brejchová, Vladimír Pucholt, Vladimír Menšík
Approx. 88 min. New 4K DCP Restoration.

“Forman's second film is a small gem. The story is almost classical in its simplicity: a pretty little blonde meets a young pianist at a dance hall, and they spend a happy night of love together. But she takes the affair altogether more seriously than he does, and when she pays an unannounced call on his parents, everybody is appalled. He feels he is being trapped, she feels betrayed, and the parents see both sides in turn, until in the end nobody knows what to think because nobody seems to be playing according to any known rules. Much of Forman's humor comes from the fact that his characters peer out at the world like timid nocturnal animals, always prepared to defend themselves against attack, but constantly having the ground cut from under their feet by the discovery that people are never quite what they seem at first glance. Using mostly non-professional actors, letting them improvise, then refining, shaping and perfecting, he achieves something indescribably exact, touching and funny.” – Time Out

Reviews

“An amazing balancing act of subtle social satire and adolescent romantic longing, of blank despair and irrepressible hope.”
– Dave Kehr