Marriage with Strings Attached

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1965

Production year

1964—1965

Premiere

3 December 1965

Runtime

98 min

Director

Pavel Kohout

Category

film

Genre

comedy, bitter comedy

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Svatba s podmínkou

Czech title

Svatba s podmínkou

English title

Marriage with Strings Attached

Summary

During the mid-1960s, writer Pavel Kohout came along with two back-to-back directorial efforts: the drama Sedm zabitých (Seven Days in Week, 1965) and Svatba s podmínkou (Marriage with Strings Attached, 1965). This latter story, also written by Kohout, is a comment on the crisis in available apartments of the time: Vlasta, a girl from outside of Prague, has completed teaching college and received a placement to teach at a rural school. But she decides to marry a Prague man, so as to be able to change professions and remain in the capital. However, instead of the agreed upon bridegroom, she accidentally commits to wed petrol pump attendant Vlastík. And that is just the tip of the iceberg of the wily Vlasta’s problems... The film, made during the era of the Czechoslovak New Wave, sees Marie Drahokoupilová (Vlasta) and Michael Junášek (Vlastík) in the lead roles. Vlasta’s lover Irka, who procures the sham marriage, is played by Radoslav Brzobohatý, whose later career tended to see him portraying decent, upstanding characters.

Synopsis

In front of a cinema the pretty and energetic young girl Vlasta addresses a waiting young man. She thinks he is the "bridegroom" that her lover Mirek has promised to arrange for her. Vlasta is not from Prague and as a newly graduated teacher she has to leave for a first work assignment in the country. She can only stay in the town and work in another field if she marries a man with official domicile in Prague. Mirek doesn't want to get married and has offered Vlasta his friend, who is a practical joker and would certainly be willing to marry her for a short time. At the agreed place Vlasta addresses Vlastík Vrána by mistake. He is not the promised friend, but he understands Vlasta's problem and agrees to the marriage. The young man works at a petrol station and since his mother's death has lived alone in a cooperative flat. After a short while the wedding takes place in Karlovy Vary. After the dinner the newly weds end up in a luxury hotel room and even in the same bed. Although Vlasta had intended to get a rapid divorce, it seems that kind Vlastík has charmed her and an almost idyllic relationship is developing between them. The woman cleans at home and takes lunches to her husband at work. But then she runs into Mirek. He is shocked to find that Vlasta is married, he did not sent anyone to the cinema that time. Suddenly he wants to marry Vlasta himself. The woman soon forgets her budding love for her husband. Vlastík is unhappy, and refuses to talk to Mirek and the lawyer. When Vlasta comes to his flat he silently hands over her things.

Cast

Marie Drahokoupilová

Vlasta Dočekalová

Michael Junášek

Vlastimil Vrána

Radoslav Brzobohatý

architekt Mirek Frynta

Iva Janžurová

Vlastina kamarádka

Lubor Tokoš

JUDr. Tomek Král

František Němec

Mirek Mára, Vlastimilův kolega

Ladislav Křiváček

funkcionář na závodech

Jan Oliva

příslušník VB, svědek na svatbě

Josef Illík

příslušník VB, svědek na svatbě

Karel Škorpík

číšník Karlíček

Věra Kadlecová

matrikářka

Jaroslav Chlasták

fotograf na svatbě

Jiří Mikeťuk

recepční

Josef Skrčený

zřízenec

Crew and creators

Director

Pavel Kohout

Second Unit Director

Jiří Mikeťuk

Assistant Director

Marie Kaplanová

Continuity

Dagmar Perlová

Screenstory

Pavel Kohout

Screenplay

Pavel Kohout

Shooting Script

Pavel Kohout

Director of Photography

Josef Illík

Second Unit Photography

Emil Sirotek

Camera Operator

František Kučera

Production Designer

Jan Oliva

Assistent Production Designer

Marta Kaplerová

Set Designer

Ivan Ernyei, Jiří Cvrček, Vladimír Ježek

Costume Designer

Pravoslav Sovák

Assistant Film Editor

Diana Heringová

Sound Designer

František Fabián, Bohumír Brunclík (zvukové efekty)

Production Manager

Věra Kadlecová

Unit Production Manager

Miroslav Smrček

Cooperation

Marcela Jakubcová (klapka), Jaroslav Chlasták (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Ladislav Simon

Selected Music

Bedřich Smetana (Prodaná nevěsta /árie Věrné naše milování/ – opera), Johann Strauss ml. (Na krásném modrém Dunaji)

Music Performed by

Sonatori di Praga (Komorní orchestr Divadla Čs. armády)

Production info

Original Title

Svatba s podmínkou

Czech Title

Svatba s podmínkou

English Title

Marriage with Strings Attached

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

comedy, bitter comedy

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1965

Production Year

1964—1965

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 26 June 1964
technical Screenplay approved 27 August 1964
start of filming 21 September 1964
end of filming 28 January 1965
projection approval 20 July 1965
withdrawal from distribution 6 April 1973

Premiere

premiere 3 December 1965 /unsuitable for youths/ (celostátní)
premiere 10 December 1965 /unsuitable for youths/ (kina 64 U Hradeb /1 týden/ a Alfa /2 týdny od 25. 12./, Praha)

Studio

Barrandov

Creative Group

Tvůrčí skupina Novotný – Kubala, Bedřich Kubala (vedoucí dramaturg tvůrčí skupiny), Ladislav Novotný (vedoucí výroby tvůrčí skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

98 min

Original length in metres

2 786 meters

Distribution carrier

16mm, 35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,66, 1:2,35

Colour

black & white

Sound

sound

Sound system/format

mono

Versions

Czech

Dialogue languages

Czech

Subtitles languages

without subtitles

Opening/End credits languages

Czech