#661: VLÁČIL, Frantiśek: Marketa Lazarová (1967)
VLÁČIL, Frantiśek (Czechoslovakia)
Marketa Lazarová [1967]
Spine #661
Blu-ray
Blu-ray
In its native land, František Vláčil's Marketa Lazarová has been hailed as the greatest Czech film ever made; for many U.S. viewers, it will be a revelation. Based on a novel by Vladislav Vančura, this stirring and poetic depiction of a feud between two rival medieval clans is a fierce, epic, and meticulously designed evocation of the clashes between Christianity and paganism, humankind and nature, love and violence. Vláčil's approach was to re-create the textures and mentalities of a long-ago way of life, rather than to make a conventional historical drama, and the result is dazzling. With its inventive widescreen cinematography, editing, and sound design, Marketa Lazarová is an experimental action film.
165 minutes
Black & White
Black & White
Monaural
in Czech and German
2:35:1 aspect ratio
Criterion Release 2013
Director/Writer
Based on the novel by Vladislav Vančura.
Screenplay by František Pavliček and Frantiśek Vláčil.
Vláčil was 43 when he directed Marketa Lazarová.
Vláčil was a Czech filmmaker, greatly celebrated in his homeland, particularly for this daring, audacious film.
The Film
This is cinema unlike anything you’ve ever seen. The screen bursts with a manic energy that never lets up.
Thirteenth-century Bohemia. Christianity vs. Paganism. Royalism vs. Serfdom. Rape turned to love. The themes wrap themselves around each other like a snake. The crisp black & white images alternate between harsh violence and heartbreaking beauty.
Magdaléna Vášáryová (19 at the time) is magnificent as Marketa.
The score by Zdenêk Liška deserves special mention. The music enlivens much of Vláčil’s poetic imagery.
Film Rating (0-60):
54
The ExtrasThe Booklet
Forty page booklet featuring essays by film scholar Tom Gunning and translator Alex Zucker and a 1969 interview with Vláčil.
Commentary
None
Video interview 1
With actors Vášáryová, Ivan Palúch, and Vlastimil Harapes and costume designer Theodor Pištek.
Video interview 2
Video interview 2
With film historian Peter Hames and journalist and film critic Antonín Liehm.
Documentary
In the Web of Time, a short documentary from 1989 by cinematographer František Uldrich, in which director Vláčil discusses his filmmaking process.
Video interview 3
Documentary
In the Web of Time, a short documentary from 1989 by cinematographer František Uldrich, in which director Vláčil discusses his filmmaking process.
Video interview 3
With Universal Production Partners technical director Ivo Marák about the film’s restoration.
Storyboard gallery
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