Hoří, má panenko
Al fuoco pompieri!
The Firemen's Ball
Director:
Miloš FormanCámara:
Miroslav OndříčekMúsica:
Karel MarešReparto:
Jan Vostrčil, Josef Šebánek, Ladislav Adam, Vratislav Čermák, František Debelka, Václav Novotný, František Paska, František Reinstein, Josef Řehořek (más)Sinopsis(1)
In a village under the Giant Mountains, a firemens' ball is in preparation. The former chairman of the firemen, Vrána, is to be rewarded by a golden axe for fifty years of service in the firemens' corps. The men decorate the dancing hall: there is a rich tombola prepared on two tables in the corner, guarded by Josef, one of the members of the committee. When the ball begins, the rest of the committee members try to find girls - candidates for the ball's beauty queen competition. But they are unable to agree upon the winner and their decision-making is moreover constantly influenced by their family members. There are many unpleasant situations during the selection of girls behind the closed door of the office. The whole action results in a fiasco - the girls are shy and refuse to come up to the stage. Josef, too, faces some problems. Every time he leaves the tombola to have a beer, something disappears from the tables. Later, he finds out that the stolen collared pork resides hidden in his wife's bag. In the midst of the celebrations, a fire bursts out in the village. Although the firemen do their best, the wooden cottage of old man Havelka burns to the ground. The villagers decide to donate the tombola takings to him. Upon their return to the dance hall, however, they find the tables with the tombola all empty. The organizers ask the people present to return everything, but the only one to be found by the tables is the innocent Josef who wanted to correct his wife's wrongdoings. The ball is over, people walk away. There is only Vrána sitting in the empty hall, waiting for his reward. But that, unfortunately, was stolen, too. (texto oficial de la distribuidora)
(más)Reseñas (9)
A brilliant comedy that is more chilling than funny. Under the commies, every critical film was said to hold up a mirror, and that is very accurate for this film. The fire brigades protested, but it's not about them at all, this film has a much deeper message. The scene with the old man at his burning house is one of the saddest I've ever seen.
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Miloš Forman applied his excellent observational talent through a reflective portrayal of the contemporary political atmosphere. The final fire brigade meeting on the topic of "those who stole are doing well" is the best evidence of that. An unrestrained satirical view of typical Czech pettiness that blindly aspires to high goals – the beauty pageant, and then skillfully combined with folk humor – the quarrel of old spouses over who will watch the tombola. At first glance, it may seem naively simple, but at its core, it is profoundly intelligent and incredibly truthful to the extent that the safe was absolutely "justified" in its time.
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A portrait of Czech (at its core apparently international) smallness, fitted on a small canvas of a Firemen's ball. Excellent acting performances, convincing atmosphere, humor that makes you laugh, but then you get surprised by the strange chill... The final dialogue about those who steal and those who do not steal should be shown as the equivalent of the national anthem of the Czech Republic. Forman used the same means as in A Blonde in Love, Ondříček’s excellent documentary camera, a brass band background, and dialogues as if randomly watched in medias res. The gags are even sharper and more refined than in the previous film, some of which make one laugh, whilst others make your smile freeze. As Vladislav Vančura used to say: humor is not laughing, but rather knowing better. And after watching The Firemen's Ball, the viewer truly knows better and it is not joyful at all. Unfortunately, the film does not lose its topicality. On the contrary.
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It's actually a sad movie about how stupid and hypocritical people are. I have to say, except for a few scenes, I wasn't amused, more like I wanted to cry when I saw it. The fact that there are non-actors, the dialogue is life-like, and the director is Milos Forman did nothing for me. If you hate people for a while after watching it, I hope you won't be surprised.
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The best film by Miloš Forman that he made before leaving for overseas. At the same time, a sophisticated and uncomfortably effective sarcastic allegory on real communism in the Czech environment. Lots of venomous lines, humorous situations, and great acting, as well as clever filmmaking that helped Forman succeed in the world. Move the bed closer to the fire so that he warms up. Despite the undisputed cruelty of many scenes, I really like this film. The foreign producer was desperate at the time of selecting the girls for the beauty queen competition, but evidently didn't understand that the director was after something completely different. Overall impression: 95%.
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A well deserved great cult-classic, whose humour will be relevant for a long time thanks to the perfectly cast non-actors. The scene with the selection of the beauty queen in particular is simply flawless, especially the expression of Šebánek and co. after the arrival of all the girls' "jewels". Miloš Forman had it in the bag from the beginning of his career, he knew what to expect from a film and what to do about it, and this funny and nostalgic movie is a clear proof of that.
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The Firemen’s Ball is my favourite of Forman's Czech films from the 1960s, and from time to time I like returning to it, with its exceptionally curious choice of a beauty queen (well - actually just a selection of candidates) and the bizarre prizes of the raffle slowly disappearing, while a feeling of boundless (but very desirable) awkwardness grows to unprecedented proportions during the screening. The ubiquitous humorous touch is transformed into a dense, even poignant feeling at the end – during the cottage fire I felt an unpleasant chill down my spine. Now a cult classic of its genre, it has an exquisitely timeless atmosphere.
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Esta película me es muy lejana y al mismo tiempo confirma que mi preferencia pertenece claramente al trabajo de Forman en el extranjero. Quizás también esté cansado de ver películas en las que se presenta a los checos como una nación de paletos y ladrones, aunque fuera mil veces cierto.
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Tragicomic film, where personally I feel more emphasis on the tragedy because even though the movie is quite relaxed, I can't help but see how people behave and how these caricatures in Forman's film are real. Hypocrisy, greed, disrespect, and mediocrity, all hidden under the fact that you have some, basically any title.
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