Ecstasy

Summary

Gustav Machatý is rightly viewed as one of the great figures of Czechoslovak cinema. Extase (Ecstasy, 1932) was the most successful Czechoslovak film of the pre-war era with international audiences. But it also represents a reaction to cold box office returns – for Machatý was unhappy with his previous two talkies, and so for this effort he reduced dialogue in favour of music. The 31 year-old director thus hoped that this drama, relaying the story of a love triangle, would be understandable to audiences across the globe. However, Machatý ultimately had to produce not just a Czech and German version of the film, but also a French-language one – each with slightly different elements. Artistically, this complex film can be said to be in the spirit of the German concept of “Gesamtkunstwerk” – meaning “total artwork”. Furthermore, Extase gained a scandalous reputation for its provocative and explicit eroticism (19 year-old Hedy Kiesler [later known as Hedy Lamarr] appears naked on screen). But such controversies failed to take away from the fact that this story of a young woman, who is escaping from an unhappy marriage into the arms of an attractive engineer, is ultimately a tale filled with conventional morality.

Synopsis

Note

Jan W. Speerger was originally cast into the role of lawyer but was replaced by Karel Mácha-Kuča and the scene was shoot again. The film was issued in Czech, German and French versions. The film in Czech version was presented at the 2nd Venice Film Festival, 1934.

In the year 2019 the Czech version was digitally restored by National Film Archive Prague (Národní filmový archiv).