The Strong Win

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1990

Production year

1990

Premiere

16 January 1991

Runtime

90 min

Director

Petr Šícha

Category

film

Genre

crime

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Silnější než já

Czech title

Silnější než já

English title

The Strong Win

Summary

Real events that took place in 1986 provided the material for director Petr Šícha’s feature-film debut four years later. In Silnější než já (The Strong Win, 1990), Prague crime investigators Šárka and Kraft (Karel Roden and Jiří Ornest) hunt in vain for a serial killer targeting young women. Young tutor Táňa, who has just started working at a boarding school for apprentices, experiences two attacks by an unknown assailant. The circle of suspects is thus narrowed down to the apprentices, who due to the soft approach of the school director are inclined to criminal behaviour. One of the trainees is the emotionally disturbed Richard, who is traumatised by haunting experiences he suffered during his childhood. Classmates intend to lynch him, but the investigators intervene as they seek to bring him to justice. The 19-year-old Karel Zíma made his debut in the role of the assailant. Director Šícha would much later underline his abilities in producing commercially successful films by shooting Bastardi (The Bastards, 2010), Školní výlet (School Trip, 2012) and Obchodníci (The Peddlers, 2013).

Synopsis

A young girl was found murdered in the Prague park of Vyšehrad. An unknown murderer stabs yet another victim in a house corridor. The detectives Šárka and Kraft investigate the murders, but without success. There is an apprentices' boarding house in the town, headed by director Vojta in a rather peculiar way. The apprentices often leave school for their moonlighting jobs and then share the earnings with their foreman. Headed by the brutal youngster Zupák, they terrorize the newcoming "yardbirds". Carrying out repairs in people's apartments, they make lists of their valuables and then sell them to the leader of a gang of robbers. A young educator Táňa begins in the boarding house. She soon experiences two attacks by the unknown brute. These cases are, however, only boy's escapades to the director, who refuses to report them to the police. The apprentice Profa meets a prostitute by the name of Kristýna in a bar. Yet another young girl was attacked in the park and her condition is critical. The police suspect the sexual deviant Šumák of the crimes. Táňa thereupon reports her own assaults and the investigators accuse the apprentice Smrtka of it. A man in a pub catches the murderer's appearance and the assaulted woman recognizes the apprentice Richard in him. Richard tries to murder Kristýna but the prostitute survives. The cellar of the boarding house once again witnesses a hunt for Richard, this time also participated in by people from the neighbourhood. The killer is caught and must be saved by the police from being lynched. In the police car, Richard recalls his dreadful childhood experiences.

Note

The film was based on a real event.

Cast

Karel Zima

učeň Richard Čížek

Jakub Wehrenberg

učeň Profa

Sylvia Wysocká

Voice by Helena Friedrichová
prostitutka Kristýna

Karel Roden

kriminalista Šárka

Jiří Ornest

kriminalista Kraft

Jan Přeučil

ředitel dr. Vojta

Ernesto Čekan

učeň Zupák

Silvia Petöová

vychovatelka Táňa

Tomáš Krejčíř

učeň Smrtka

Aleš Spurný

učeň Emil

Pavel Šimák

učeň Elton

Nina Jiránková

vychovatelka Vošahlíková

Jiří Wohanka

nenápadný kriminalista

Karel Augusta

vychovatel Šimeček

Milan Sandhaus

stařík-svědek

Bohuslav Ličman

soused opravující výtah

Filip Švarc

nový učeň

Tamara Kotrbová

přepadená dívka Radka

Yvetta Kornová

opilá matka

Václav Kotva

rozčilený muž na ulici

Jan Schánilec

vykradač Špacír

Edward Tomas

podezřelý muž zvaný Šumák

Jana Vaňková

přepadená žena

Taťana Puttová

arogantní žena

Igor Smržík

Radčin otec

Blanka Lormanová

Radčina matka

Vladimír Kudla

vousatý cestující

Jan Kuželka

tlustý cestující

Luděk Nešleha

Vojtův kamarád

Ladislav Goral

cikán cestující ve vlaku

Martina Adamcová

žena vypovídající na VB

Jana Robenková

svědkyně Suchá

Milan Riehs

divadelní herec

Tomáš Jančařík

Eva Osladilová

Ondřej Ernyei

Renata Dvořáková

Naděžda Mihelková

Svatava Smoláková

Roman Pohanka

Daniel Straka

Lucie Hrušková

Jana Mrázová

Crew and creators

Director

Petr Šícha

Second Unit Director

Petr Makovička

Assistant Director

Kamil Busch

Screenstory

Viktorín Šulc

Director of Photography

Roman Pavlíček

Second Unit Photography

Pavel Nečesal

Camera Operator

Jan Carda

Production Designer

Ludvík Široký

Assistent Production Designer

Jolana Nováková, Jaroslav Řeřicha

Set Designer

Radek Baláž, Richard Staněk, Milan Šveňha

Film Editor

Jiří Brožek

Assistant Film Editor

Eva Horázná

Sound Designer

Vlastimil Kulíšek

Production Manager

Miroslav Smrček

Unit Production Manager

Rudolf Mos, Karel Lupoměský

Unit Production Manager

Božena Novotná, Vojtěch Kis, Martina Hanzlíková

Consultant

Jiří Kraus

Cooperation

Jitka Stehlíková (klapka), Jan Kuděla (fotograf), Jiří Pičman, Zdeněk Koudela, Miroslava Součková (2), Jaroslav Křenek

Music

Music Composed by

Martin Němec

Music Performed by

Martin Němec, Pavel Nedoma

Music Supervisor

Vít Popp

Production info

Original Title

Silnější než já

Czech Title

Silnější než já

English Title

The Strong Win

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

crime

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1990

Production Year

1990

Premiere

premiere 16 January 1991 /unsuitable for youths/

Creative Group

6. tvůrčí skupina, Jan Vild (vedoucí 6. tvůrčí skupiny), Milana Melcerová (vedoucí produkce 6. tvůrčí skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

90 min

Distribution carrier

35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,66

Colour

colour

Sound

sound

Sound system/format

mono

Versions

Czech

Dialogue languages

Czech

Subtitles languages

without subtitles

Opening/End credits languages

Czech