Hogo Fogo Homolka

Summary

A year after the success of the comedy Ecce Homo Homolka (1969), the director and screenwriter Jaroslav Papoušek made a loose sequel (the final part of the trilogy – Homolka a tobolka (Homolka and the Purse) – was added in 1972). In the film Hogo Fogo Homolka, the heroes move closer to their dream of becoming a well-off Czech family when they purchase a car. However, for the Homolkas, chasing the new diversions that the new vehicle offers is ultimately trumped by their duty to visit their great-grandfather who is apparently “dying” in a country village. But everything in the south Bohemian hamlet confounds the family’s expectations. While the “dying” old man passes the time merrily revelling with his colleagues and fellow hunters, the Homolkas are dying of boredom in the cottage, squabbling and getting angry with the naughty twins. The atmosphere changes with a visit to a local fishpond and the unexpected death of the great-grandfather, which instantly reveals to the Homolkas the banality of their life. The sequel differs from the original film in terms of its rather more serious tone. The typical urban, consumerist family has to grapple with a maelstrom of contrasts, which enhances the movie’s satirical and comic potential. The juxtapositions between the city and the countryside as well as different generations’ views on life are based on precisely observed details that remind us of Papoušek’s status within the Czechoslovak New Wave. The usual cast of actors includes Helena Růžičková (the corpulent Heduš), František Husák (Ludva), and Josef Šebánek (Grandpa Homolka). Above all, Josef Kolb (“Miloš Forman’s” non-actor from Lásky jedné plavovlásky (Loves of a Blonde,1965) and the tragicomedy Hoří, má panenko (Firemen’s Ball, 1967) is an apposite addition as the great-grandfather. A 21-year-old Dagmar Bláhová made her screen debut in a small part as a driver’s girlfriend, while brothers Matěj and Petr Forman reprise their roles as the Homolka twins.

Synopsis