The Third One

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1968

Production year

1968

Premiere

17 January 1969

Runtime

98 min

Category

film

Genre

psychological

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Ta třetí

Czech title

Ta třetí

English title

The Third One

Summary

This relationship drama presents the protagonist Jiří Mánek, an ageing architect who finds himself in conflict due to his desires for two women who are very different in personality and age. The first is a former girlfriend, the doctor Jarmila, while the second is Slovak student Eva. The temperamental, whimsical Eva offers Jiří an infusion of energy. But Jarmila represents the stability of a serious relationship. The “third one” who makes “her” way into our lead character’s chaotic life is the most faithful life companion of all – death. This love triangle, which gradually takes on symbolic value, came to the silver screen after screenwriter Jan Otčenášek took a Jaroslav Havlíček novel and made an adaptation that writer-director Jaroslav Balík was able to transform into a screenplay and film. The motion picture sees Václav Voska, Ida Rapaičová and Blanka Bohdanová in the lead roles.

Synopsis

At the funeral of his schoolmate, the nearly-fifty-year old architect Jiří Mánek meets his former close acquaintance - physician Jarmila. They both are still single. Jarmila has recently returned to Prague after years of work on the frontier. Jiří leaves for a business trip. As a conservationist, he is to grant permission for an adaptation of a Baroque chateau to office spaces. On the road, a pretty young hitchhiker named Eva stops him. Eva is Slovak and her spontaneous behaviour enchants Jiří. He thus does not mind making a short detour and takes Eva all the way to the luxurious cottage of her parents. Eva is a student and she loves enjoying life more than anything. A romance develops between the two people, so different in age and temperament. After some time, however, the initial enchantment gradually fades. Jiří resents Eva's group of noisy schoolmates and the girl begins to be bored with the sedate man. Then Jiří meets Jarmila again and realizes that a woman who is closer to him in age is a much more suitable partner. When Eva leaves for mountains despite his disagreement, Jiří breaks up with her, begins to date Jarmila and asks her to marry him. Eva is taken by surprise by the separation but wants to spend a last love night with Jiří. In the morning, the man wakes up alone. He finds Jarmila and unscrupulously cancels the planned wedding, mistaking what Eva meant as a pleasant way to end their affair for a resumption of the relationship. Eva bluntly rejects him and Jiří decides to choose "the third" - death.

Cast

Václav Voska

architekt Jiří Mánek

Ida Rapaičová

studentka Eva

Blanka Bohdanová

MUDr. Jarmila Pátková

Leopolda Dostalová

matka Jiřího

Čestmír Řanda

Mánkův bratr Karel

Míla Myslíková

Božena, Karlova žena

Jan Ekl

student Jirka, syn Karla a Boženy

Jana Gýrová

studentka Bobina, Evina kamarádka

Jitka Bendová

Jitka, Evina kamarádka

Jiří Štěpnička

Bíťák, Jitčin přítel

František Němec

medik Emil, Evin kamarád

Renata Olárová

Helena, Jarmilina kolegyně

Jela Lukešová

Evina matka

Pavel Sedláček

beatník v klubu

Viktor Maurer

Jiřího bývalý spolužák

Vladimír Stach

Jiřího bývalý spolužák

Luděk Hulan

hudebník

Josef Illík

muž za výlohou

D. Bondyová

přítelkyně

Rudolf Pech

host

Viktor Riebauer

host

Lilka Leszkowová

host

Eva Svobodová

Jeřábková

František Riechelt

kapelník

Jan Hochman

hudebník

Jiří Hrdlička

hudebník

Štěpán Dohnal st.

hudebník

Štěpán Dohnal

hudebník

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Václav Matějka

Assistant Director

Aleš Lamr

Continuity

Hana Kozlová

Based on

Jaroslav Havlíček (Ta třetí – román)

Director of Photography

Josef Illík

Second Unit Photography

Adolf Hejzlar

Camera Operator

Jiří Kučera

Production Designer

Oldřich Bosák

Assistent Production Designer

Bohumil Nový

Set Designer

Miloslav Dvořák, Ivan Ernyei

Costume Designer

Jan Kropáček

Sound Designer

Roman Hloch

Special Effects

Trikový ateliér FSB

Production Manager

Václav Rouha

Unit Production Manager

Ladislav Dražan, Zdeňka Černá

Unit Production Manager

Karel Čabrádek

Cooperation

Roman Soumar (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Karel Mareš

Music Performed by

Rudolf Rokl

Songs

Odvez mě zpátky do staré Virginie /Carry Me Back To Old Virginny/

Song Composer James A. Bland
Writer of Lyrics James A. Bland
Singer Louis ArmstrongMills Brothers

Production info

Original Title

Ta třetí

Czech Title

Ta třetí

English Title

The Third One

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

psychological

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1968

Production Year

1968

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 18 October 1967
technical Screenplay approved 15 February 1968
start of filming 26 March 1968
end of filming 25 July 1968
the first film copy approved 3 December 1968
projection approval 12 December 1968
withdrawal from distribution 31 December 1986

Premiere

premiere 17 January 1969 /unsuitable for youths/ (celostátní)
premiere 23 January 1969 /unsuitable for youths/ (kina 64 U Hradeb /2 týdny/ a Městská knihovna /1 týden od 6. 2./, Praha)

Studio

Barrandov

Creative Group

Tvůrčí skupina Novotný – Kubala, Bedřich Kubala (vedoucí dramaturg tvůrčí skupiny), Ladislav Novotný (vedoucí výroby tvůrčí skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

98 min

Original length in metres

2 769 meters

Distribution carrier

16mm, 35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,66, 1:2,35

Colour

black & white

Sound

sound

Sound system/format

mono

Versions

Czech

Dialogue languages

Czech, Slovak

Subtitles languages

without subtitles

Opening/End credits languages

Czech