A Czech film Vaclav, that had its premiere in cinemas in the beginning of December last year, got immediately after its release on the top of the Czech movie chart. But is the film really as unique and different as some of the critiques announced? Does it really deserve such a big audience?
Vaclav is based on a true story of a man who got a presidential amnesty and of whom we would simply say that is not normal. His intellectual growth stopped when he was a teenager. He lives in a village house just with his mother, goes to work when he feels like it, basicaly he does all the time only whatever he wants. A little mentally ill Vaclav is not able to think in wider associations neither is he able to see the consequences of his acts. He cares only for a present moment, he ignores the future. Nevertheless, the past caused him a big problem. He misses a lot his father who tried to emigrate during the ex-regime but did not succeed and died. Vaclav suffers by his absence to such a level that he starts to imagine him; he speaks to him, and even asks for an advice. It is clear that the village people are not really in favor of Vaclav’s crazy acts and it is only his mother who is able limit him, but only a bit.
The comic scenes of Vaclav’s ‘interesting ideas’ are altered with more serious topics such as responsibility, freedom, ability to forgive, importance of family love and trust. The problem is that those themes are only proposed but not developed further on. Vaclav offers a very strong story but the potential of the film was not really used as it could have been. The tragical things are not showed in their deepness, they became quite superficial. It is a pitty, the film could be really unique, but the difference from many other ‘nice’ tragic-comedies that have been already made in a past is not so big.
Vaclav is based on a true story of a man who got a presidential amnesty and of whom we would simply say that is not normal. His intellectual growth stopped when he was a teenager. He lives in a village house just with his mother, goes to work when he feels like it, basicaly he does all the time only whatever he wants. A little mentally ill Vaclav is not able to think in wider associations neither is he able to see the consequences of his acts. He cares only for a present moment, he ignores the future. Nevertheless, the past caused him a big problem. He misses a lot his father who tried to emigrate during the ex-regime but did not succeed and died. Vaclav suffers by his absence to such a level that he starts to imagine him; he speaks to him, and even asks for an advice. It is clear that the village people are not really in favor of Vaclav’s crazy acts and it is only his mother who is able limit him, but only a bit.
The comic scenes of Vaclav’s ‘interesting ideas’ are altered with more serious topics such as responsibility, freedom, ability to forgive, importance of family love and trust. The problem is that those themes are only proposed but not developed further on. Vaclav offers a very strong story but the potential of the film was not really used as it could have been. The tragical things are not showed in their deepness, they became quite superficial. It is a pitty, the film could be really unique, but the difference from many other ‘nice’ tragic-comedies that have been already made in a past is not so big.
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