With Second Run being the main UK company to bring Eastern European cinema to DVD,I was surprised to find Arrow bringing auteur Milos Forman's famous Czech flick to Blu-Ray,which led to me keeping an eye on the price hopefully going down a bit! Getting hold of the film during Arrow's New Year sale,I got set to join the ball.
View on the film:
Banned "For ever" by the Czech Communist government, Arrow break the ban with a fine transfer and interesting,detailed extras,with the picture retaining a film grain, and the layering of the foreground/background soundtrack remaining clean.
The last film he would make in Czech before fleeing to the US,co-writer/(with regular collaborates Jaroslav Papousek/ Ivan Passer and Václav Sasek) directing auteur Milos Forman continues building on the visual themes of his directing debut Audition (1964-also reviewed), in Czech New Wave (CNW) jump-cuts to various members of the public at the ball,and swaying whip-pans riding on the unfolding farcical commotion. Prominently using music since Audition, Forman here composes the music as the only thing which remains stable in the midst of chaos.
Acting out what he'd like the cast to do but not giving them dialogue, Forman and his fellow writers ring satirical bells which angered the Commies,as the firemen try to hide putting models on "show trials" (even forcing some against their will to take part) for their own leering delight, along with attempts at giving out awards and holding a raffle being broken down by under handed thieving. Mixing very good professional and non- professional, the writers take a scatter-gun approach with the characters,with a satirical bite in the firemen not acting as individuals,but like board members giving the appearance of being effective at bureaucracy, whilst not letting their hair down in public at the firemen's ball.
View on the film:
Banned "For ever" by the Czech Communist government, Arrow break the ban with a fine transfer and interesting,detailed extras,with the picture retaining a film grain, and the layering of the foreground/background soundtrack remaining clean.
The last film he would make in Czech before fleeing to the US,co-writer/(with regular collaborates Jaroslav Papousek/ Ivan Passer and Václav Sasek) directing auteur Milos Forman continues building on the visual themes of his directing debut Audition (1964-also reviewed), in Czech New Wave (CNW) jump-cuts to various members of the public at the ball,and swaying whip-pans riding on the unfolding farcical commotion. Prominently using music since Audition, Forman here composes the music as the only thing which remains stable in the midst of chaos.
Acting out what he'd like the cast to do but not giving them dialogue, Forman and his fellow writers ring satirical bells which angered the Commies,as the firemen try to hide putting models on "show trials" (even forcing some against their will to take part) for their own leering delight, along with attempts at giving out awards and holding a raffle being broken down by under handed thieving. Mixing very good professional and non- professional, the writers take a scatter-gun approach with the characters,with a satirical bite in the firemen not acting as individuals,but like board members giving the appearance of being effective at bureaucracy, whilst not letting their hair down in public at the firemen's ball.