For film audiences, movies devoted to the pioneers of cinema have a nostalgic charm – and Jiří Menzel’s picture is no exception. Shot for the 80th anniversary of the establishment of Czech cinema, this movie is based on the lives of real historical figures whose identities were concealed by new names, which still made it easy to guess who they were. The owner of Prague’s first permanent cinema, Viktor Ponrepo, is called Vilém Pasparte in Báječní muži s klikou (Those Wonderful Men with Crank), the film pioneer Jan Kříženecký had his name changed to Jakub Kolenatý, and the cabaret artist and first Czech film actor Josef Šváb-Malostranský became Jára Šlapeta. Other characters in this whimsical comedy about the beginnings of film in the Czech lands also have real prototypes, as do the films made by the fictional heroes of Those Wonderful Men with Crank. Although Jiří Menzel used his knowledge of archive materials and historical facts in his eighth film, he and fellow screenwriter Oldřich Vlček did not adhere too closely to real life. Consequently, the filmmakers not only offer a vivid and informed insight into history, but also provide an entertaining spectacle conceived as retro-nostalgia. The cinematographer Jaromír Šofr and composer Jiří Šust made an important contribution to the film’s alluring atmosphere. Menzel made use of a playful and poetic narrative approach, which provided him with a safe and crowd-pleasing setting during the difficult “normalisation” era of Soviet entrenchment that followed the Warsaw Pact invasion. The director entrusted the lead role in this joyful tribute to the difficult craft of filmmaking to Rudolf Hrušínský, who had already been a perceptive collaborator in the nostalgic tragicomedy Rozmarné léto (Capricious Summer, 1967). While the role of the mercurial comedian Šlapeta was played by Vladimír Menšík, Menzel symbolically reserved the part of the first Czech director for himself. The co-screenwriter Oldřich Vlček appears in this timeless film in a smaller role as Berousek.
Returning home to Prague, the magician Pasparte, an owner of a circus caravan, a projector, and a father of Pepička, meets his dying colleague who entrusts his beautiful daughter Aloisie to his care. In Prague they all take up their lodgings at the house At Blue Fish in which they intend to arrange the programmes. The firm is owned by widow Evženie with whom Pasparte shares flat and bed. Evženie is jealous of Aloisie therefore Pasparte sends Aloisie as a housewife to the single man Jakub Kolenatý who earns his living by photographing and wants to record the revived pictures of Prague. Pasparte wants to found in Prague the first permanent Czech movie theatre in which there would be projected also the original Czech films. Therefore he applies for licence and joins Jakub who enables him to shoot the documentary record of famous actress Emilie Kolářová-Mladá. Emilie does not like the cinematograph and after she finds out that secretly her performance was filmed she destroys in anger the scanned material. The expectations of the men with crank are lost and Pasparte prepares, to his daughter's delight, to leave Prague. But closely to the departure he gets the licence and this is what decides. He marries Evženie to get money for the movie theatre and becomes a respected owner of the first permanent movie theatre. Aloisie returns to Jakub and they love one another. When Emilie learns about success of film roles of famous Sarah Bernhardt she is desirous to offer her services to cinematography.
In order to achieve the specific color of the film, the original negative was chemically modified according to the instructions of the director of photography. Distribution copies were copied from an intermediate negative.
kouzelník Vilém Pasparte
kabaretiér Jára Šlapeta
fotograf Jakub Kolenatý
divadelní umělkyně Emilie Kolářová
vdova Evženie Slavíková, Paspartova družka
Aloisie, Paspartova schovanka
Pepička, Paspartova dcera
Benjamín Furore, otec Aloisie
Berousek, obchodník s filmy
úředník
sluha Hynek
dáma na oživlé fotografii
babička
mladík Frič
mechanik René Tuháček
Gábina
promítač Holoubek
opilec
opilec
chlapec Josef
společník dámy na oživlé fotografii
černý myslivec
farář
divačka
divák
mimové
vedoucí mimů
mim
mimka
mim
mim
mim
mimka
mimka
mimka
mimka/tanečnice
skupina historického šermu
majitel biografu
majitel biografu
majitel biografu
penzista
ženich
akrobatka
výrostek
rozhodčí
zápasník
zápasník
poselstvo
poselstvo
poselstvo
šermíř/novomanžel
šermíř/mládenec v Tyrolích
šermíř
šermíř
šermíř
šermíř
šermíř
šermíř
šermíř
hudebník
hudebník
hudebník
hudebnice
hudebník
tanečnice
tanečnice
boxerka
boxerka
boxerka
boxerka
dívka
hlas dražitele filmů
Dobroslav Zborník, Magda Vodičková
Jiří Forst, Jaroslav Lehman, Ladislav Rada
Jaroslav Bouček, Zdeněk Štábla, Jiří Janda (3), Ing. František Šebesta
Jitka Radová (klapka), Jiří Kučera (fotograf), Národní technické muzeum v Praze
FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín)
Song Composer Jiří Šust
Writer of Lyrics Jiří Šust
Singer Vladimír Menšík
Song Composer Jiří Šust
Writer of Lyrics Jiří Šust
Singer Vladimír Menšík
Báječní muži s klikou
Báječní muži s klikou
Those Wonderful Men with Crank
Those Wonderful Movie Cranks
film
featuretheatrical distribution
historical, comedy
Czechoslovakia
1978
1978
literary Screenplay approved 20 December 1977
start of filming 10 February 1978
technical Screenplay approved 21 March 1978
end of filming 4 October 1978
projection approval 18 October 1978
withdrawal from distribution 1 July 1993
premiere 3 August 1979 /suitable for youths/
Dramaturgická skupina Miloše Brože, Miloš Brož (vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny)
feature film
84 min
2 409 meters
16mm, 35mm
1:1,66
colour
sound
mono
Czech
Czech, German
without subtitles
Czech
Festival: 1. mezinárodní festival komediálních filmů Vevey
1981
Vevey / Switzerland
Jaromíra Mílová
Event: Československá nominace na Cenu americké Akademie filmových věd a umění Oscar 1979
1979
Praha / Czechoslovakia
Festival: 1. mezinárodní filmový festival Houston
1979
Houston / United States of America