Father-in-Law

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1979

Production year

1979

Premiere

4 July 1980

Runtime

66 min

Category

film

Genre

comedy

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Tchán

Czech title

Tchán

English title

Father-in-Law

Summary

Theatre and TV director Zdeněk Míka builds on a script by highly experienced screenwriter Jaroslav Dietl. In Tchán, the first time director, aged 60 at the time, tells the story of farming cooperative employee Vavřinec, in charge of malfunctioning agricultural machinery and also a large family. Vavřinec’s youngest daughter Štěpánka wants to marry a machine technician from a neighbouring village, ignoring her father’s wish for her to study at an agricultural university. Vavřinec believes he has prevailed, but Štěpánka is about to spring a surprise… The leading parts in this popular comedy from 1977 go to Josef Bláha in the role of Vavřinec, Dagmar Veškrnová as the stubborn Štěpánka, and Svatopluk Skopal as the girl’s relentless suitor. Vlastimil Brodský excels in the role of Štěpánka’s grandfather.

Synopsis

Vavřinec, a maintenance manager of co-op farm machinery, controls all his large family. No one can decide anything unless he has approved of it. He is proud of his youngest daughter Štěpánka. She has just successfully passed school-leaving exams and entrance exams to the University of Agriculture. The girl meets a mechanic Tomáš from the neighbour village of Šafářova Lhota. The young people fall in love. The letter from the University informs Štěpánka has not been admitted. The father finds out at the university that his daughter has not appealed against the decision and therefore he applies instead of her and Štěpánka is admitted. When he spots her with Tomáš, everything is clear to him. To divert Štěpánka from the marriage, he invites Tomáš for a family lunch and ridicules him in front of all the family, so Tomáš runs away and gets angry with Štěpánka, too. He makes up with her as late as before she leaves for her studies. Soon they get secretly married. Vavřinec gradually realizes what wiles are waiting for his daughter in Prague. When he visits her in a student hostel, he can see his fears have come true. After all he decides to match his daughter with Tomáš, as he is not a stranger, for the least. He invites the boy for lunch but finds out his daughter is not alone in her room. After lots of ravel he puts the young pair finally together and arranges a big wedding. A letter brought by a post-woman to Štěpánka, however, discloses, Štěpánka is married and has Tomáš's surname. Not to waste the great preparations for the wedding, Vavřinec organizes a golden wedding celebration for his father-in-law.

Note

The film was budgeted together with the picture Music for Two, doth films were shot simultaneously.

Film online

Cast

Josef Bláha

vedoucí strojní stanice Vavřinec

Libuše Havelková

Tereza, Vavřincova manželka

Vlastimil Brodský

Ludvík Šimon, Vavřincův tchán

Valerie Kaplanová

Růžena Šimonová, Vavřincova tchyně

Dagmar Veškrnová

Štěpánka, Vavřincova dcera

Svatopluk Skopal

mechanizátor Tomáš Čtvrtníček

Vladimír Krška

hlídač v JZD Mandlík

Karolina Slunéčková

listonoška Hanýsková

Václav Sloup

opravář Vojtěch

Otto Hradecký

děkan Vysoké školy zemědělské

Oldřich Velen

předseda MNV Sýkora

René Přibil

Vavřincův syn František

Jindřiška Brendlová

Sylva, Františkova žena

Vladimír Míka

Vavřincův mladší syn Roman

Sylva Vozková

Jiřina, Romanova žena

Zlata Adamovská

Štěpánčina spolubydlící

Helena Herbrichová

Štěpánčina spolubydlící

Jan Kuželka

opravář zvaný Cvalda

Karel Charvát

návštěvník koleje

Marcela Martínková

vrátná na koleji

David Schneider

student Eduard, syn Hanýskové

Erik Tabery

poručík SNB

Radka Mayerová

svatebčanka

Bohumil Bína

hudebník

Zdeněk Hrabal (2)

hudebník

František Jezvik

hudebník

Jan Kouba (hudebník)

hudebník

Bohumil Matys

hudebník

Oto Reiser

hudebník

Adolf Řežáb

hudebník

František Strnad (2)

hudebník

Josef Vrchota

hudebník

Zdeněk Hrabal (3)

hudebník

Jaroslav Velek

hudebník

Daniel Přibil

Františkův syn

Jindřich Přibil

Františkův syn

Zdeněk Dufek

gratulant

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Jiří Mikeťuk

Assistant Director

Viktor Walter

Screenstory

Jaroslav Dietl

Screenplay

Jaroslav Dietl

Shooting Script

Zdeněk Míka

Dramaturg

Zdeněk Dufek

Director of Photography

Jiří Stöhr

Camera Operator

Michal Krob, Antonín Mařík

Production Designer

Oldřich Bosák

Assistent Production Designer

František Císař

Set Designer

Jan Hodný, Jaroslav Česal, Karel Kočí

Costume Designer

Lída Novotná

Assistant Film Editor

Eliška Willigová

Sound Designer

Jiří Kejř

Production Manager

Josef Císař

Unit Production Manager

Ladislav Beneš, Jaroslava Pražská

Unit Production Manager

Bohumil Vlach

Cooperation

Zina Kršková (klapka), Miloš Schmiedberger (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Ladislav Štaidl

Music Performed by

Orchestr Ladislava Štaidla (Music Conducted by Ladislav Štaidl)

Songs

Chocholoušek chocholatý /kniha Ferdův slabikář/

Writer of Lyrics Ondřej Sekora
Singer Dagmar Veškrnová

Production info

Original Title

Tchán

Czech Title

Tchán

English Title

Father-in-Law

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

comedy

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1979

Production Year

1979

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 2 December 1978
start of filming 21 April 1979
technical Screenplay approved 12 May 1979
end of filming 11 December 1979
projection approval 28 December 1979

Premiere

premiere 4 July 1980 /suitable for youths/

Creative Group

Dramaturgická skupina Miroslava Hladkého, Miroslav Hladký (vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

66 min

Original length in metres

2 345 meters

Distribution carrier

16mm, 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

Awards

Vítěz

Festival: 2. festival československé filmové veselohry Nové Město nad Metují

1980
Nové Město nad Metují / Czechoslovakia
Zdeněk Míka