Escaping with Cézar

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1990

Production year

1989

Premiere

1 June 1990

Runtime

82 min

Category

film

Genre

children

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Útěk s Cézarem

Czech title

Útěk s Cézarem

English title

Escaping with Cézar

Working title

Jdu hledat Labe

Summary

The 1980s saw a wealth of family-oriented Hollywood sci-fi films about visitors from another planet, something which during the decade inspired a number of Czech children’s motion pictures. One such example is this comedy – the final feature film from experienced children’s filmmaker Ota Koval. Utilising a script from first-time screenwriter Miroslav Adamec, Koval creates an escapist adventure, whose title telegraphs the fact that viewers are set to watch a tale about visitors from another planet. But in reality, Uf -oni jsou tady (The Aliens Are Here!, 1988) tells the story of a clever deception put in play by a group of tricksters, who try to conceal their true criminal intentions from a group of inquisitive boys. As such, this sci-fi film also takes on elements of a satirical comedy. Talented young actor Matouš Soukenka assumes the role of the nosey Jirka; he would also appear in Jiří Hanibal’s children’s film Útěk s Cézarem (Escaping with Cézar, 1990).

Synopsis

The seven-year old Radek lives only with his father and is sometimes taken care of by his grandparents. He is accompanied everywhere on his wanderings by a dog named Cézar, which he received from his mother as a puppy. But the mother left the family some time ago and emigrated to West Germany. Radek, however, thinks that his mother died. His father decides to marry a children's sanatorium educator, Lenka. But Radek does not like the young woman and tries to convince his father that they can do well alone. Lenka moves in with them after the marriage. Their life together does not lack troubles. Radek does not want to accept Lenka into his life with his father. The situation is moreover complicated by Cézar, to which Lenka is rather unattached. Radek, however, gradually gets used to Lenka because she is kind and sincerely tries to win his favour. But when Cézar eats a cake which Lenka made for the father's birthday, she and Radek get into a conflict and the woman hits the boy. That is the end between them. The boy also learns from an untactful neighbour that his mother is actually alive. Radek secretly takes a letter which the father received from her recently, asks the neighbour to read it for him and then decides to escape with Cézar to live with her. Everybody searches for him in the forests after the escape. The desperate and pregnant Lenka, too, scouts around for the boy and finally finds him on a tugboat on the river Elbe. Radek can see that she really loves him, and he addresses her "mommy Lenka" for the first time.

Cast

Zdeněk Žák

lesník Oldřich Knap, Radkův otec

Zuzana Schulzová

vychovatelka Lenka

Adriana Demartini

Míla Beránková

Jiří Samek

dědeček

Ladislav Potměšil

opilec Beránek, Mílin otec

Jaroslava Brousková

Beránková, Mílina matka

Barbora Srncová

Máňa, Mílina sestra

Karel Koloušek

důchodce Šmejkal

Jakub Zdeněk

Honza Charvát

Vanda Švarcová

Charvátová, Honzova matka

Václav Babka

listonoš Umáčený, Honzův dědeček

Pavel Nový

nadporučík VB

Karel Gult

svatebčan-lesák

Martin Hruška

pohraničník

Marian Cingroš

harmonikář

D. Salávová

děvčátko

O. Bureš

dubl za Matouše Soukenku

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

René Slauka, Martin Faltýn

Assistant Director

Lucie Minaříková

Screenstory

Jiří Hanibal

Screenplay

Jiří Hanibal

Director of Photography

Jiří Macák

Second Unit Photography

Rudolf Holan

Camera Operator

Vladimír Murat, Tomáš Pavlíček

Production Designer

Jaromír Švarc

Assistent Production Designer

Petr Václavek

Set Designer

Bohumil Kadlec, Rudolf Kinský, Jan Klíma, Milan Šebo

Costume Designer

Marta Kaplerová

Film Editor

Josef Valušiak

Assistant Film Editor

Růžena Hejsková, Jana Šimonová

Sound Designer

Jiří Hora

Production Manager

Petr Čapek

Unit Production Manager

Daniela Jenčíková, Tomáš Baloun, Josef Štambach

Unit Production Manager

Božena Novotná, Milan Maňák

Cooperation

Terezie Čampulková (klapka), Jaromír Komárek (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Jiří Bažant

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by Mario Klemens)

Music Supervisor

Jiří Zobač

Songs

Já povídám, žežuličko

Singer Karel Gultsbor

Do lesíčka na čekanou

Song Composer lidová píseňMiloš Vacek /úprava/
Singer sbor

Vysoký jalovec

Song Composer lidová píseň
Singer sbor

Production info

Original Title

Útěk s Cézarem

Czech Title

Útěk s Cézarem

English Title

Escaping with Cézar

Working Title

Jdu hledat Labe

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

children

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1990

Production Year

1989

Production specifications

start of filming 9 February 1989
end of filming 7 June 1989
the first film copy approved 4 October 1989
withdrawal from distribution 30 June 1995

Premiere

premiere 1 June 1990 /suitable for youths/

Creative Group

4. tvůrčí skupina, Marcela Pittermannová (vedoucí 4. tvůrčí skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

82 min

Distribution carrier

16mm, 35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,37

Colour

colour

Sound

sound

Sound system/format

mono

Versions

Czech

Dialogue languages

Czech

Subtitles languages

without subtitles

Opening/End credits languages

Czech

Awards

Vítěz

Festival: 7. mezinárodní festival filmů pro děti a mládež Isfahán

1991
Isfahán / Iran

Vítěz

Festival: 30. festival filmů pro děti Zlín

1990
Zlín / Czechoslovakia
Matouš Soukenka

Vítěz

Exhibition: 22. národní přehlídka filmů pro děti Ostrov

1990
Ostrov nad Ohří / Czechoslovakia
Matouš Soukenka