Jumping over Puddles Again

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1970

Production year

1970

Premiere

7 May 1971

Runtime

87 min

Category

film

Genre

drama

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Už zase skáču přes kaluže

Czech title

Už zase skáču přes kaluže

English title

Jumping over Puddles Again

Summary

Australian author Alan Marshall’s autobiographic novel I Can Jump Puddles first mesmerised readers in 1955. The story of a boy, who contracts polio at the age of six, but whose resolve helps him overcome his debilitating condition and keep up with his peers, appealed to seasoned screenwriter Jan Procházka. This 1971 adaptation, directed by Karel Kachyňa, tells the tale of a young disabled boy, whose friends help him to fulfil his horse-riding dreams. The film somewhat echoes a similar story told in Procházka’s earlier film Trápení (Trials and Tribulations, 1961), also directed by Kachyňa, highlighting the pair’s long-running and successful collaboration. Trials and Tribulations is a family film starring a very young Jorga Kotrbová as a 12-year-old girl, sharing her hardships with an indomitable stallion. An equine partner also plays an important role in another Procházka-Kachyňa collaboration, namely wartime film Ať žije republika (Long Live the Republic!, 1965) in which the lead character is confronted with the warped mindset of adults… Similarly to how Pricházka adapted Mark Twain’s works to create Páni kluci (Boys Will Be Boys, 1975) the screenwriter also shifts Marshall’s work into a different time and location. The story takes place in Tlumačov, a small town in Moravia at the start of the 20th century. The main protagonist is little Adam, whose dad works at the local stud farm. The boy’s dream is to work with horses, but polio leaves him disabled. Adam does not give up and secretly begins to learn riding… Vladimír Dlouhý, 12 at the time, takes the leading role in this timeless film. Working with director Kachyňa served to open the door to a wider acting career for Dlouhý. Despite Už zase skáču přes kaluže (Jumping over Puddles Again, 1970) ostensibly exploring a “harmless” non-political theme, the post-1968 “normalisation” environment led to the blacklisted Jan Procházka being replaced in the film’s credits by his colleague Ota Hofman. The picture premiered in May 1971, and served as Kachyňa’s final collaboration with his favourite screenwriter, who died in February of the same year. Their previous work, the political drama Ucho (The Ear, 1970) was denied a release by the censor and was not seen by the public until 1990.

Synopsis

Little Adam was born to a poor village family. His father used to ride and tame horses in the manorial stud. From him, Adam inherited a great love for horses and cannot wait to grow up a little so his father might teach him how to handle horses. One day, friends induce Adam to shoot with a catapult at a young blacksmith. The blacksmith gets angry and begins to pursue Adam. Adam hides from him in a pond. In the evening, he gets a high fever and the physician, called for the next day, finds that the boy is suffering from infantile paralyzis. Adam cannot walk and has to go to hospital. One leg recovers a bit, but still, the boy faces crutches and a wheelchair until the end of his life. His mummy is devastated but Adam comforts her, firmly convinced he is going to jump over puddles as well as ride horses again. Then, he begins to make his dream come true with the help of friends, secretly borrowing a dapple-grey horse from Lojza and beginning to ride. First, only through the meadow, but later also in the manorial stables. He falls from the horse many times and gets bruised, but never relent. Thus, he can eventually perform his skills in front of his worried and moved parents.

Note

The script was written by the then-banned author Jan Procházka, under the name of the acceptable scriptwriter Ota Hofman.

Film online

Cast

Zdena Hadrbolcová

Mařenka, Adamova matka

Karel Hlušička

Adamův otec

Vladimír Šmeral

pacient Ambrož

Darja Hajská

porodní bába Turečková

Bořivoj Navrátil

lékař v nemocnici

Jaroslav Satoranský

kovář Martin

Zdeněk Kryzánek

opilec v nemocnici

Oldřich Musil

MUDr. Cibulka

Božena Böhmová

vrchní sestra

Jana Švandová

zdravotní sestra/žena v autě

Ladislav Křiváček

zřízenec Piroh

Bohuslav Čáp

pacient Odpustek

Milena Steinmasslová

Adamova starší sestra

Věra Machová

Adamova mladší sestra

Dušan Urgošík

kluk Vašek

Aleš Plhoň

Špunt

Libuše Komancová

žena ve žlutém

Adolf Minský

brýlatý pacient

Miroslav Koudela

kluk Jirka

Jan Herodes

kluk Lojza

Robert de Castello

kluk

Miloš Filipovský

kluk

Valentýn Rukavička

kluk

Martin Lácha

kluk

Karel Kmoch

dirigent dechové kapely

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Milada Mikešová

Based on

Alan Marshall (Už zase skáču přes kaluže /I Can Jump Puddles/ – kniha)

Screenplay

Jan Procházka (pod jménem Oty Hofmana), Ota Hofman, Karel Kachyňa

Shooting Script

Karel Kachyňa

Director of Photography

Josef Illík

Second Unit Photography

Adolf Hejzlar

Camera Operator

Jiří Ondráček

Production Designer

Oldřich Okáč

Assistent Production Designer

Jan Kňákal

Art Director

Ester Krumbachová

Set Designer

Vladimír Ježek, Jiří Žebrakovský, Ladislav Winkelhöfer

Costume Designer

Ester Krumbachová

Film Editor

Miroslav Hájek

Assistant Film Editor

Vilemína Binterová

Sound Designer

Jiří Lenoch

Production Manager

Karel Vejřík

Unit Production Manager

Zdena Dobřichovská, Rudolf Mos

Unit Production Manager

Tomáš Tintěra

Consultant

František Zábrodský

Cooperation

Dagmar Ševčíková (klapka), Ivan Minář (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Zdeněk Liška

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín)

Music Supervisor

Jiří Zobač

Songs

Kdybych já byla věděla

Singer Zdena Hadrbolcová

Production info

Original Title

Už zase skáču přes kaluže

Czech Title

Už zase skáču přes kaluže

English Title

Jumping over Puddles Again

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

drama

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1970

Production Year

1970

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 22 December 1969
technical Screenplay approved 24 April 1970
start of filming 19 May 1970
end of filming 9 September 1970
the first film copy approved 14 December 1970
projection approval 28 December 1970

Premiere

premiere 6 May 1971 /suitable for youths/ (kina Sevastopol a Moskva, Praha)
premiere 7 May 1971 /suitable for youths/ (celostátní)
renewed premiere 1 February 1987 /suitable for youths/

Distribution

Ústřední půjčovna filmů (původní 1971 a obnovená 1987)

Creative Group

Tvůrčí skupina Švabík – Hofman (příprava), Ota Hofman (vedoucí dramaturg tvůrčí a vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny), Erich Švabík (vedoucí výroby tvůrčí a vedoucí výrobní skupiny), Dramaturgická skupina Oty Hofmana, Výrobní skupina Ericha Švabíka

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

87 min

Original length in metres

2 515 meters

Distribution carrier

16mm, 35mm

Aspect ratio

1:1,37

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: 15. festival zdravotnických filmů Podbořany

1988
Podbořany / Czechoslovakia

Vítěz

Festival: 2. mezinárodní filmový festival FEST Bělehrad

1972
Bělehrad / Serbia

Vítěz

Festival: 2. mezinárodní filmový festival FEST Bělehrad

1972
Bělehrad / Serbia

Vítěz

Exhibition: 3. přehlídka filmů pro děti Ostrov nad Ohří

1971
Ostrov nad Ohří / Czechoslovakia
Vladimír Dlouhý

Vítěz

Exhibition: 11. celostátní přehlídka československých filmů pro děti Gottwaldov

1971
Zlín / Czechoslovakia
Vladimír Dlouhý

Vítěz

Festival: 6. mezinárodní festival filmů pro děti a mládež Teherán

1971
Teherán / Iran

Vítěz

Exhibition: 3. přehlídka filmů pro děti Ostrov nad Ohří

1971
Ostrov nad Ohří / Czechoslovakia
Karel Kachyňa

Vítěz

Exhibition: 11. celostátní přehlídka československých filmů pro děti Gottwaldov

1971
Zlín / Czechoslovakia

Vítěz

Festival: 6. mezinárodní festival filmů pro děti a mládež Teherán

1971
Teherán / Iran

Vítěz

Festival: 9. filmový festival mladých Trutnov

1971
Trutnov / Czechoslovakia

Vítěz

Exhibition: 11. celostátní přehlídka československých filmů pro děti Gottwaldov

1971
Zlín / Czechoslovakia

Vítěz

Festival: 19. mezinárodní filmový festival San Sebastián

1971
San Sebastián / Spain

Vítěz

Festival: 9. filmový festival mladých Trutnov

1971
Trutnov / Czechoslovakia
Zdeněk Liška

Vítěz

Festival: 4. celostátní festival českých a slovenských filmů Plzeň

1971
Plzeň / Czechoslovakia