Directed by:
Oldřich LipskýCinematography:
Vladimír NovotnýComposer:
Vlastimil HálaCast:
Vladimír Menšík, Jaroslava Obermaierová, Josef Abrhám, Bohuš Záhorský, Stella Zázvorková, Jiří Steimar, Martin Růžek, Bedřich Prokoš, Josef Hlinomaz (more)Plots(1)
Oldřich Lipský's one-of-a-kind Czech black comedy employs an ingenious twist - telling the life story of a philanderer and condemned murderer entirely in reverse: from his 'birth' at the guillotine, to his departure as an infant. Starring the great Vladimír Menšík in a rare leading role, the film is wildly inventive and disarmingly hilarious. The reverse chronology, with events playing out completely backwards, upends the narrative flow to become a playful, surreal, Dadaist experience unlike anything else in contemporary cinema. (Second Run)
(more)Cast
Vladimír Menšík
Czechoslovakia
Best movies:
Ikaros' Fall (1977) (TV movie)
Jako kníže Rohan (1983) (TV movie)
Tažní ptáci (1983) (TV movie)
Jaroslava Obermaierová
Czechoslovakia
Best movies:
Marecek, Pass Me the Pen! (1976)
Witchhammer (1969)
Lucerna (1967) (TV movie)
Josef Abrhám
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
Best movies:
Marecek, Pass Me the Pen! (1976)
Revizor (1971) (theatrical recording)
Hráči (1983) (theatrical recording)
Bohuš Záhorský
Austria-Hungary
Best movies:
Higher Principle (1960)
The Emperor's Baker - The Baker's Emperor (1951)
Lucerna (1967) (TV movie)
Stella Zázvorková
Czechoslovakia
Best movies:
Cosy Dens (1999)
Těžká Barbora (1960) (theatrical recording)
Kolya (1996)
Jiří Steimar
Austria-Hungary
Best movies:
Lemonade Joe (1964)
Happy End (1967)
Who Wants to Kill Jessie? (1966)
Martin Růžek
Austria-Hungary
Best movies:
Tři na lavičce (1978) (TV movie)
Witchhammer (1969)
All My Compatriots (1968) - narrator
Bedřich Prokoš
Austria-Hungary
Best movies:
Naši furianti (1983) (theatrical recording)
Higher Principle (1960)
Waiter, Scarper! (1980)
Josef Hlinomaz
Austria-Hungary
Best movies:
The Emperor's Baker - The Baker's Emperor (1951)
Lemonade Joe (1964)
The Good Soldier Schweik (1956)
Jaroslav Štercl
Czechoslovakia
Best movies:
Men About Town (1969)
Lemonade Joe (1964)
Happy End (1967)
Helena Růžičková
Czechoslovakia
Best movies:
Revizor (1971) (theatrical recording)
Men About Town (1969)
Three Wishes for Cinderella (1973)
Mirko Musil
Czechoslovakia
Best movies:
Give the Devil His Due (1984)
Jako kníže Rohan (1983) (TV movie)
Sňatky z rozumu (1968) (series)
Lubomír Bryg
Czechoslovakia
Best movies:
Těžká Barbora (1960) (theatrical recording)
Lemonade Joe (1964)
Happy End (1967)
Lena Birková
Soviet Union
Best movies:
Jára Cimrman Lying, Sleeping (1983)
Kolya (1996)
Adela Has Not Had Her Supper Yet (1978)
Alena Bradáčová
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
Best movies:
Happy End (1967)
Marketa Lazarová (1967)
Svatba jako řemen (1967)
Vladimír Čech st.
Russian Empire
Best movies:
Happy End (1967)
You Are a Widow, Sir (1970)
Waterloo (1967) (TV movie)
Valtr Levý
Best movies:
Happy End (1967)
Petr Sedlák
Best movies:
Happy End (1967)
The Valley of the Bees (1967)
Marketa Lazarová (1967)
Lubomír Kostelka
Czechoslovakia
Best movies:
Těžká Barbora (1960) (theatrical recording)
Balada z hadrů (1960) (theatrical recording)
All My Compatriots (1968)
Stanislav Litera
Czechoslovakia
Best movies:
Lemonade Joe (1964)
Happy End (1967)
The Girl on the Broomstick (1971)