I’ll Get Up and Scald Myself with Tea Tomorrow

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1977

Production year

1976

Premiere

12 August 1977

Runtime

90 min

Category

film

Genre

comedy, sci-fi

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem

Czech title

Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem

English title

I’ll Get Up and Scald Myself with Tea Tomorrow

Summary

Science fiction works written by Josef Nesvadba have been the driving force behind the creation of numerous Czech films. What's more, the author would often get involved in the screenwriting for a movie. Howevr, unlike Tarzanova smrt (Tarzan’s Death, 1962), Blbec z Xeenemünde (The Idiot from Xeenemünde, 1962) and Ztracená tvář (The Lost Face, 1965), Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem (I’ll Get Up and Scald Myself with Tea Tomorrow, 1977) differs in that its screenplay was written by Jindřich Polák and Miloš Macourek, based on Nesvadba’s short story. The plot takes place in a future where travelling back and forth in time is a commonplace tourist entertainment. However, a trio of Nazi sympathisers decide to travel back to 1944 in order to change the course of history by helping Hitler win the war with the use of a stolen thermonuclear bomb. In an unexpected twist, the time machine operator Karel Bureš chokes on his breakfast roll and is replaced by his virtuous twin brother Jan, a man who is ignorant of the purpose of the mission and not entirely in favour of the journey. Other passengers include an American married couple and flight attendant Helena. Although the mission fails, Jan must return to the past twice again to put a definitive end to the Nazi trio’s plans. As the story unfolds through a number of time paradoxes and mistaken identities, doubles of various characters appear… The cleverly built narrative uses a playful, comic plot to present an ambitious warning to audiences, something typical of Nesvadba’s writing. Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem is above all a successful combination of Macourek’s screenwriting inventiveness and Polák’s lightness of directing. Cameraman Jan Kališ, who had previously collaborated with Polák in the making of the comedy Klaun Ferdinand a raketa (Clown Ferdinand and the Rocket, 1962) and the legendary science fiction film Ikarie XB 1 (Voyage to the End of the Universe, 1963), effectively tackles the need to evoke different time frames as well as the special effects side of the feature. The success of this story of parallel histories also stems in no small part from its cast. The lead dual role was delivered by Petr Kostka while popular performers of “good” characters – Vlastimil Brodský, Jiří Sovák and Vladimír Menšík – appear here as the three Nazis. Otto Šimánek, well-known as Pan Tau (Tau) in Polák’s eponymous television series, plays one of the American tourists.

Synopsis

Universum, a travel agency of Prague, organizes adventurous journey to the past. Three Nazis, named Abard, Bauer and Kraus want to make use of it and give to Hitler a hydrogen bomb they had stolen in a museum. At the end of 1944 the bomb should help the Third Reich win the War. A corrupted pilot Karel Bureš promises to take them to the past. The Nazis are in a very good health state, due to the anti-ageing pills. However, their plan comes to nothing. On 1 June, the day of their flight, Karel gets suffocated by a roll and his twin brother, a designer Jan, who is completely different character then Karel, gets scalded by hot tea. In fear to tell the truth to Karel's girlfriend Eva, Jan pretends to be Karel. He takes the flight for Karel in a rocket, where an elderly American couple travels together with the three Nazis. A surprised stewardess Helena watches Karel's strange behaviour - a former womanizer turned into a nice and polite gentleman. Despite Jan's resistance, the Nazis push through to the cockpit and Bauer lands in the war-time Germany. All are arrested. Hitler rejects the Nazis assistance - by a mistake they unfortunately landed three years earlier: it is December 8th 1941, the period of successful German war expeditions and Japanese alliance. Only Kraus, Bauer and Bureš succeed in running away from execution. They return to the period shortly before the takeoff. All the travellers are alive and the three back-comers have their doubles. Jan travels to the past two more times before he succeeds in depriving the world from Nazis. In his double life he becomes Karel, Eva's husband -to-be and also Jan, a happily in love with the pretty stewardess Helena.

Note

The song in the scene of Hitler watching the documentaries of the fall of the Third Reich was composed for German movie Tango Notturno (1937; directed by Fritz Kirchhoff).

Cast

Petr Kostka

konstruktér Jan Bureš/pilot Karel Bureš, Janovo dvojče

Jiří Sovák

Voice by Jiří Schmitzer /sturmbannführera SS Klause Abarda v mladých letech/
nacista Klaus Abard/sturmbannführerv SS Klaus Abard v mladých letech

Vladimír Menšík

nacista Rolf Kraus

Vlastimil Brodský

nacista Ing. Bauer

Marie Rosůlková

americká turistka Shirley Whiteová

Otto Šimánek

americký turista Patrick, muž Whiteové

Valerie Chmelová

letuška Helena Máchová

Josef Větrovec

artista Kroupa

Slávka Budínová

artistka, Kroupova žena

Zuzana Ondrouchová

artistka Eva, dcera Kroupových, Karlova dívka

Josef Bláha

vedoucí Rousek, Karlův nadřízený

František Peterka

Robert Nol, šéfpilot v Universu

Marie Drahokoupilová

sekretářka Markéta, Nolova žena

František Vicena

říšský kancléř a vůdce Adolf Hitler

Horst Giese

Voice by Jiří Hálek
říšský ministr osvěty a propagandy Joseph Goebbels

Jan Sedliský

říšský vedoucí SS Heinrich Himmler

Jiří Hanák (2)

říšský ministr letectví a maršál Hermann Göring

Vladimír Pospíšil

vedoucí kanceláře říšského kancléře Martin Bormann

Ota Sklenčka

MUDr. Kryl

Jan Pohan

říšský důstojník SS Schmidt

Karel Hábl

říšský důstojník SS Steiberger

Miloš Vavruška

říšský důstojník SS

Pavel Spálený

Voice by Soběslav Sejk
nacista Streich

Zdeněk Hodr

nacista Fritz Klein

Gustav Opočenský

Voice by Josef Chvalina
nacista Schönfeld

Svatopluk Beneš

nacista Joachim Braun

Petr Nárožný

řidič nákladního auta

Viktor Maurer

zaměstnanec Universa, komplic

Jan Přeučil

říšský lékař SS

Ladislav Šimek

lékař pohotovosti

Štěpán Bulejko

Voice by Oldřich Lukeš
říšský admirál Wolf

Elena Strupková

květinářka

Jitka Zelenohorská

recepční u přepážky Universa

Vladimír Hrabánek

vedoucí půjčovny automobilů

Jana Pehrová

sekretářka půjčovny automobilů

Miroslav Moravec

operátor Universa

Jiří Lábus

mechanik v Universu

Jana Hermachová

stenografka

Vladimír Kratina

Voice by Jiří Havel
artista Petr Kroupa, Evin bratr

Vlasta Kleinová

stará dáma s holí

Josef Šebek

příslušník VB v Universu

Jan Kotva

Voice by Roman Skamene
příslušník VB

Zdeněk Mlčoch

příslušník VB

Bedřich Šetena

příslušník VB

Jiří Lír

zaměstnanec Universa u baru

Žofie Veselá

barmanka v Universu

Jana Křížová

Voice by Nelly Gaierová
dáma se psem

Miloš Vávra

untersturmführer SS, hlídka u vjezdu

Jiří Žák

říšský důstojník

Zdeněk Vondráček

zaměstnanec Universa u rampy

Milan Pěkný

zaměstnanec Universa

Bert Schneider

zaměstnanec Universa

Petr Burian

říšský důstojník

Eduard Pavlíček

říšský důstojník

Milada Karasová (2)

hosteska v Universu

Eva Kůsová

hosteska v Universu

Pavla Novotná

hosteska v Universu

Michal Mácha

říšský důstojník, Hitlerův pobočník

Luděk Nešleha

sturmann SS u rakety

Jaroslav Tomsa

dubl za Petra Kostku – pád na skládce

Zdeněk Vlček

dubl za Petra Kostku

Milan Vokřínek

dubl za Petra Kostku

Jaroslav Hrozný

dubl za Jiřího Sováka

Dubbing

Julie Jurištová

hlas jedné z hostesek

Eva Klepáčová

hlas z hlášení Universa

Ivan Malík

hlas hlasatele z rozhlasu

Jindřich Narenta

hlas z německého rozhlasu

Ivo Gübel

hlas oberleutnanta Müllera ve vysílačce

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Zdena Pavlátová, Lada Vacková

Assistant Director

Jana Vohryzková

Continuity

Pavla Marková

Screenstory

Josef Nesvadba

Director of Photography

Jan Kališ

Second Unit Photography

Rudolf Holan

Camera Operator

Jan Hanzal

Production Designer

Milan Nejedlý

Assistent Production Designer

Josef Kraus

Set Designer

Vladimír Mácha, Rudolf Příhoda, Vladimír Slepička

Costume Designer

Theodor Pištěk ml.

Make-Up Artist

Vladimír Petřina, Alena Šedová, Jiří Farkaš, Rudolf Hammer (masky autentických postav), Miloslav Jandera (masky autentických postav)

Film Editor

Zdeněk Stehlík

Sound Designer

Adolf Böhm

Production Manager

Jan Šuster

Unit Production Manager

Jan Vild, Rudolf Mos

Unit Production Manager

Miloslav Doležal

Consultant

RNDr. Jiří Mrázek, CSc., Zbyšek Svoboda

Cooperation

Jitka Radová (klapka), Jiří Kučera (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Karel Svoboda

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by Štěpán Koníček)

Songs

Ich hab'an Dich gedacht /Tango Notturno/

Song Composer Hans-Otto BorgmannHans Fritz Beckmann
Writer of Lyrics Hans Fritz Beckmann
Singer Pola Negri

Production info

Original Title

Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem

Czech Title

Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem

English Title

I’ll Get Up and Scald Myself with Tea Tomorrow

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

comedy, sci-fi

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1977

Production Year

1976

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 1 June 1975
start of filming 15 September 1975
technical Screenplay approved 10 November 1975
end of filming 31 January 1977
projection approval 16 February 1977
withdrawal from distribution 1 June 1993

Premiere

festival premiere 16 June 1977 (28. filmový festival pracujících – léto ´77)
premiere 12 August 1977 /suitable for youths/

Studio

Barrandov

Creative Group

Dramaturgická skupina Miroslava Hladkého, Miroslav Hladký (vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

90 min

Original length in metres

2 590 meters

Distribution carrier

16mm, 35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,66

Colour

colour

Sound

sound

Sound system/format

mono

Versions

Czech

Dialogue languages

Czech, English, German

Subtitles languages

without subtitles

Opening/End credits languages

Czech

Awards

Vítěz

Festival: 12. mezinárodní festival fantastických filmů a hororů Sitges

1979
Sitges / Spain
Jindřich Polák