Seeing a Coffin in a Dream...

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1968

Production year

1967—1968

Premiere

26 July 1968

Runtime

86 min

Category

film

Genre

comedy, crime

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

„Rakev ve snu viděti...“

Czech title

„Rakev ve snu viděti...“

English title

Seeing a Coffin in a Dream...

Working title

Zuzana a sedm loupežníků

Summary

In 1968, Jaroslav Mach took audiences back to the chateau Ronov for the sequel to his crime comedy Nahá pastýřka (The Naked Shepherdess, 1966). The chateau is now operating as a stylish hotel run by former crook Pacínek (Bohumil Šmída). However, Ronov still draws participants in organised crime: robbers of antiques give way to a gang that has just stolen two million crowns from a state bank. The villains, posing as members of the jazz band Skelet, hide the loot in a suitcase that looks exactly the same as the luggage of police captain Tronda (Vladimír Menšík). Mutual animosity heightens, the adversaries start murdering each other and eventually only Zuzanka (Jaroslava Obermaierová) remains alive. Pavel Landovský, František Peterka and Zdeněk Dítě star as the criminals passing themselves off as musicians.

Synopsis

The Ronov castle has been changed into a hotel, offering stylish facilities to its guests: weddings in the torture chamber, a Black Lancer kidnapping brides, a night's lodging in a family tomb etc. The reformed petty swindler Pacínek runs the hotel. The business is far from thriving; the place is half-empty, and the jazz band Skeleton, together with their singer Zuzanka, decide to leave. Nobody in the hotel has any idea that the band is in fact a gang of thieves who have just robbed the Prague State Bank, taking two million crowns from its vaults. The perpetrators have brought their goods to Ronov in a small black army suitcase and are about to split the money. The suitcase is almost identical to one belonging to the police Captain Tronda. They get swapped by accident in Ronov and then the case keeps changing hands, although the thieves do their best never to lose sight of it. The gang members have little solidarity and each tries to steal the goods for himself. Competing in this manner, they all get killed and only Zuzanka remains alive. The musicians' deaths bring journalists and sensationalist guests to the castle. The police are also in Ronov. They have managed to trace the robbery to the musicians. Zuzanka is arrested with all the millions. The hotel is sure to thrive for a long time to come and Pacínek can peacefully water the flowerbed with the arrangement of pansies reading "You Will All Die!".

Cast

Bohumil Šmída

vedoucí hotelu Felix Pacínek

Jaroslava Obermaierová

zpěvačka Zuzanka Korejsová/Boženka

Zdeněk Dítě

lupič a hudebník Rudolf Vengloš

Čestmír Řanda

lupič a hudebník Milan Weyr

Lubomír Kostelka

lupič a hudebník Čestmír Kosík

Libuše Havelková

Ema, Kosíkova žena

František Peterka

lupič a hudebník Josef Balda

Pavel Landovský

lupič a hudebník Zdeněk Štýbr

Vladimír Menšík

kapitán VB Tronda

Jan Skopeček

major VB Jarda Bergl

Zdeněk Řehoř

kriminalista Patras

Oldřich Velen

kapitán VB Václav Roj

Slávka Budínová

zralá dáma

Kateřina Klumparová

Květuška, Pacínkova manželka

Miloš Nedbal

profesor Nykl

Václav Lohniský

vrchní Stěhule

Josef Chvalina

náměstek ředitele

Vladimír Jedenáctík

porybný Ventura

Beda Lak

kustod

Consuela Morávková

nevěsta Blanka Svobodová

Jan Pohan

ženich Richard Bezděk

Vilda Marzin

dr. Pavlousek

František Miroslav Doubrava

ženich Arnošt Velebný

Helena Růžičková

nevěsta Antonie Drobná

Zora Polanová

úřednice banky

Lubomír Bryg

hlavní pokladník

Gino Hašler

novinář

Rudolf Kudrnáč

novinář

Vítězslav Černý

příslušník VB

Josef Koza

příslušník VB

Vojtěch Kheck

příslušník VB

Zdeněk Týle

průvodčí

František Závěta

číšník

Josef Šulc

kriminalista

Karlini

kouzelník

Mušketýři a bandité

skupina historického šermu ÚDA

Duo Štandy

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Eliška Štíbrová

Assistant Director

Karel Brchel

Shooting Script

Jaroslav Mach

Director of Photography

Jiří Tarantík

Second Unit Photography

Jan Kváča

Camera Operator

Bohumil Paris

Production Designer

Karel Černý

Assistent Production Designer

Bohumil Dudař

Art Director

Neprakta

Costume Designer

Jan Kropáček

Film Editor

Zdeněk Stehlík

Assistant Film Editor

Miloslava Vojnová

Sound Designer

Roman Hloch

Special Effects

Trikový ateliér FSB

Titles Designed by

Neprakta

Production Manager

Miloš Stejskal

Unit Production Manager

Jaromír Kallista, Jaroslav Koucký

Unit Production Manager

Vít Pešina

Cooperation

G. Mozolová (klapka), Karel Ješátko (fotograf), Jaroslav Trousil (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Ferdinand Havlík

Selected Music

Antonín Dvořák (Rusalka /sbor Květiny bílé po cestě/ – opera)

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín), Míša Polák /improvizace na klavír/, Orchestr Ferdinanda Havlíka

Songs

Sto zlatých zvonků

Song Composer Ferdinand Havlík
Writer of Lyrics Jan Schneider
Singer Jaroslava Obermaierová [dab]Naďa Urbánková

V Hodoníně za vojáčka mňa vzali

Song Composer lidová píseň
Writer of Lyrics lidová píseň
Singer Vladimír Menšík

Production info

Original Title

„Rakev ve snu viděti...“

Czech Title

„Rakev ve snu viděti...“

English Title

Seeing a Coffin in a Dream...

Working Title

Zuzana a sedm loupežníků

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

comedy, crime

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1968

Production Year

1967—1968

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 4 July 1967
technical Screenplay approved 11 August 1967
start of filming 22 September 1967
end of filming 8 January 1968
the first film copy approved 14 March 1968
projection approval 22 March 1968
withdrawal from distribution 31 December 1975

Premiere

premiere 25 July 1968 /suitable for youths/ (kina Kotva /3 týdny/ a Metro /3 týdny/, Praha)
premiere 26 July 1968 /suitable for youths/ (celostátní)

Creative Group

Tvůrčí skupina Šmída – Fikar, Ladislav Fikar (vedoucí dramaturg tvůrčí skupiny), Bohumil Šmída (vedoucí výroby tvůrčí skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

86 min

Original length in metres

2 438 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