The Airport Is Closed Down

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1959

Production year

1959

Premiere

26 February 1960

Runtime

96 min

Director

Čeněk Duba

Category

film

Genre

drama, psychological

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Letiště nepřijímá

Czech title

Letiště nepřijímá

English title

The Airport Is Closed Down

Working title

Kdo své nebe neunese

Synopsis

Pilots are returning from the Soviet Union to Prague after a three-month training programme. Marta receives her husband, chief pilot Jan Hochman, with cool reserve and during a party they quarrel. Jan felt secure believing Marta loved him and did not write to her during the whole of his training period. Marta, however, began an intimate relationship with the air-traffic controller Jakub Čermák during his absence and promised him that she would tell her husband of her infidelity. Jan flies off to Brussels. His plane cannot land because of fog, however, and he returns home unexpectedly. He catches Marta in Čermák's arms and leaves without a word. He wanders aimlessly through the streets. The next evening, the exhausted Hochman does badly during the final pilot examinations. Marta is waiting for him in front of the airport building. Jan is reconciled with her but he cannot come to terms with his failure at work. He does not want to fly and he fakes a nervous illness. He spends more time with Marta but he senses that she has become alienated. Marta renews her relationship with Jakub but refuses to resolve the crisis in her marriage. Jan thinks Marta is just playing games with him and Jakub, and he tries to convince Jakub of this. Marta finally admits that she does not love either one of them and both men leave. Jan accepts a job as a pilot on inland flights and Jakub asks to be relocated to another airport. Marta remains alone.

Cast

Josef Bek

pilot Jan Hochman

Irena Kačírková

Marta, Hochmanova manželka

Vladimír Ráž

letecký dispečer Jakub Čermák

Otomar Korbelář

velitel pilotů Široký

Mikuláš Huba

inspektor letiště Jozef Lipták

Vladlen Davydov

ruský pilot Andrej Kulygin

Sylva Daníčková

letuška Alena Junková

Luděk Munzar

navigátor Přemek

Otto Šimánek

pilot Dvořák

Felix le Breux

stavitel Solar

Eduard Dubský

Plíhal, Hochmanův známý

Jarmila Krulišová

manželka Jozefa Liptáka

Anna Melíšková

cestující na nádraží

Walter Taub

neurolog

Zdeněk Kutil

palubní inženýr Jarda

Jan Pohan

radista Hořčička

Zdena Kožíková

manželka Širokého

Jan Víšek

dispečer

Věra Uzelacová

úřednice na letišti

Magda Maděrová

novinářka

Jindřich Narenta

cestující v aerotaxi Beránek

Karel Hájek

fotoreportér vedle ministra

Evžen Drmola

novinář

Karel Velebný

hudebník vibrafonista

Ferdinand Krůta

cestující

Svatopluk Sýkora

Dušan David

Crew and creators

Director

Čeněk Duba

Second Unit Director

Štěpán Skalský

Assistant Director

Tomáš Kulík, Libuše Pražáková (2)

Screenplay

Pavel Kohout

Shooting Script

Čeněk Duba

Director of Photography

Rudolf Milič

Second Unit Photography

Vladimír Řezníček

Production Designer

Boris Moravec

Assistent Production Designer

Zbyněk Hloch

Set Designer

František Straka

Make-Up Artist

Karel Marek

Film Editor

Jan Chaloupek

Sound Designer

Adolf Nacházel

Special Effects

Trikový ateliér FSB

Production Manager

Rudolf Fencl

Unit Production Manager

Zdeňka Černá, Jaromír Lukáš

Cooperation

Jiří Širc (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Evžen Illín

Selected Music

Maurice Ravel (Bolero)

Music Performed by

Orchestr Karla Vlacha (Music Conducted by Karel Vlach)

Production info

Original Title

Letiště nepřijímá

Czech Title

Letiště nepřijímá

English Title

The Airport Is Closed Down

Working Title

Kdo své nebe neunese

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

drama, psychological

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1959

Production Year

1959

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 25 March 1959
technical Screenplay approved 15 April 1959
start of filming 8 June 1959
end of filming 17 November 1959
projection approval 17 December 1959
withdrawal from distribution 1 April 1966

Premiere

preview 19 February 1960 (kino Sevastopol /1 týden/, Praha)
premiere 26 February 1960 /unsuitable for youths/ (kina Lucerna /4 týdny/, Kyjev /1 týden/, Mír /1 týden/, Orlík /½ týdne od 1. 3./, Flora /1 týden od 4. 3./, Vzlet /½ týdne od 11. 3./ a Odboj /1 týden od 18. 3./, Praha)

Copyright Holders

Národní filmový archiv

Creative Group

Tvůrčí skupina Brož – Ptáček, Miloš Brož (vedoucí dramaturg tvůrčí skupiny), Jaromír Ptáček (vedoucí dramaturg tvůrčí skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

96 min

Original length in metres

2 730 meters

Distribution carrier

16mm, 35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,37

Colour

black & white

Sound

sound

Sound system/format

mono

Versions

Czech

Dialogue languages

Czech

Subtitles languages

without subtitles

Opening/End credits languages

Czech