Way Leading to Happiness

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1951

Production year

1951

Premiere

19 October 1951

Runtime

100 min

Category

film

Genre

drama, socialist-realism

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Cesta ke štěstí

Czech title

Cesta ke štěstí

English title

Way Leading to Happiness

Working title

Traktoristka

Synopsis

Vlasta Tomešová is returning to her home village from the voluntary youth brigade and is determined to become a tractor-driver. Her father is one of the few people who didn't join the farming cooperative and rejects his daughter's plan. Tomeš is influenced and shamelessly used by Fulín, the richest farmer in the village. Vlasta joins the tractor station risking a conflict with her father. The garage attendant has his objections as well, because his wife also wants to be emancipated. Vlasta's friendship with the tractor-driver Olda is growing into a love relationship. Vlasta becomes a tractor-driver and has her first ploughing job with Fulín himself. But, her malicious colleague Pepek secretly emptied the petrol tank in her tractor, and Vlasta gets stuck in the field. Fulín uses this situation as an excuse to refuse to lend Tomeš a promised pair of horses. Vlasta, with the help of her friends, ploughs her father's fields during an extended night shift. Tomeš already realized Fulín's meanness and, after being reconciled with his daughter, he joins the cooperative. Vlasta persuades the members of the cooperative of the necessity to join up the small fields. In the end, everybody comes together and ceremonially ploughs away the field boundaries.

Cast

Jiřina Švorcová

traktoristka Vlasta Tomešová

Bohumil Švarc

traktorista Olda Majer

Otakar Dadák

politický zástupce Jindra Borek

Věra Kalendová

vedoucí STS Božena Soukupová

Jaroslav Seník

agronom Vladimír Soukup

Vladimír Hlavatý

sedlák Jan Tomeš, Vlastin otec

Ella Nollová

Vlastina matka

Antonín Šůra

traktorista Pepek Foukal

Jaroslav Lokša

sedlák Fulín

Rudolf Deyl ml.

garážmistr František Karásek

Blažena Slavíčková

traktoristka Anežka, Karáskova žena

Gustav Heverle

družstevník Charouz

František Vnouček

předseda družstva Mařík

Hynek Němec

družstevník Moučka

Růžena Lysenková

družstevnice Vaňková

Běla Jurdová

redaktorka Šímová

Viktor Očásek

družstevník

František Marek

družstevník

Miloš Willig

traktorista

Karel Hovorka

traktorista

Emil Dlesk

družstevník

Vycpálkův taneční soubor ČSM

Pěvecký soubor S. K. Neumanna

Bohumil Honsa

Vlasta Fáberová

Vladimír Halada

J. Vavřín

Crew and creators

Assistant Director

Kiril Ilinčev, Arnošt Biskup

Screenstory

Roman Hlaváč, Kiril Ilinčev

Director of Photography

Václav Pazderník

Production Designer

Ferdinand Fiala

Set Designer

František Suchý

Film Editor

Jan Chaloupek

Sound Designer

Milan R. Novotný

Production Manager

Jan Sinnreich

Unit Production Manager

Václav Dobeš

Cooperation

Jaroslav Kaiser (fotograf), Strojně traktorová stanice Konopiště

Music

Music Composed by

Jiří Srnka

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by Milivoj Uzelac)

Songs

Píseň traktoristů /Traktoristická/

Song Composer Jiří Srnka
Writer of Lyrics Marie Pujmanová
Singer Pěvecký soubor S. K. Neumanna

Vlastina píseň /Domove, domove, jak tě mám ráda/

Song Composer Jiří Srnka
Writer of Lyrics Marie Pujmanová
Singer Pěvecký soubor S. K. NeumannaJiřina Švorcová [dab]

Borkova píseň /Růže rozmarýna/

Song Composer Jiří Srnka
Writer of Lyrics Marie Pujmanová
Singer Otakar Dadák

Hop, holka, svlíkej kabát /Vrták/

Singer sbor

Sekyra, motyka, pilka, válek /Obkročák/

Singer sbor

Marjánko, Marjánko

Singer sbor

Lásko, bože, lásko

Production info

Original Title

Cesta ke štěstí

Czech Title

Cesta ke štěstí

English Title

Way Leading to Happiness

Working Title

Traktoristka

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

drama, socialist-realism

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1951

Production Year

1951

Production specifications

start of filming 16 January 1951
date of censorship 18 July 1951 (konec povolení k promítání 18. 7. 1956)
the first film copy approved 19 July 1951
withdrawal from distribution 4 May 1960

Premiere

premiere 19 October 1951 /suitable for youths/ (kina Blaník /3 týdny/ a Lucerna /3 týdny/, Praha)

Copyright Holders

Národní filmový archiv

Studio

Barrandov

Creative Group

III. tvůrčí kolektiv Jana Kloboučníka, Jan Kloboučník (vedoucí III. tvůrčího kolektivu)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

100 min

Original length in metres

2 849 meters

Distribution carrier

35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,37

Colour

black & white

Sound

sound

Sound system/format

mono

Versions

Czech

Dialogue languages

Czech

Subtitles languages

without subtitles

Opening/End credits languages

Czech