For many directors of the day, the transition from the 1960s Czechoslovak New Wave to the 1970s “normalisation” era was a very painful one. Director Jiří Menzel may have had an Oscar under his belt for the celebrated Ostře sledované vlaky (Closely Watched Trains, 1966), but his adaptation of Bohumil Hrabal's novel Skřivánci na niti (Skylarks on the String) found itself locked away in a vault by the authorities until after the Velvet Revolution (though produced in 1969 it was only released as late as 1990). Although Menzel was at the peak of his directorial powers, the experience meant he did not return to film directing until 1974 with this doctrinarian “building a better future” film about a young clockmaker (Jan Hrušínský), who after leaving the army only finds his true fulfilment while working on the construction of an electricity plant in Dalešice. Among these “right-minded” workers, the man discovers the real meaning of life and finds the strength to split up from his bourgeoisie-minded girlfriend. Despite lacking Menzel’s personal stamps of playfulness and poeticism, the film can be described as a solid piece of work. Zdeněk Svěrák serves as co-writer alongside Menzel – the pair would cooperate heavily on projects over the ensuing decades.
Láďa Kratochvíl has completed his military service and returns back home to carry on his profession of a watchmaker, looking forward to see his girlfriend - a hairdresser Petra. He plans to propose her a marriage, but they do not have a place to live together, and moreover, his job is not very well paid. That is why he is leaving to Moravia to get a job at a huge construction of a Dalešice dam. He is offered a job as a lorry driver. Láďa is happy about the work, as well as about the wages, but he is missing Petra a lot. His nostalgia will be cured by girlfriend Petra's visite. She comes to see him on Fridays, trying to persuade him to come back to Prague with her. Due to Petra, Láďa neglects his working duties and is transferred to a less attractive job. He tries hard to retrieve the lost credit, helping his co-worker Miky at a complicated repair of a new caterpillar. Doing so, Láďa has lost a lot of spare time, and Miky takes him to Prague to see Petra. Láďa is badly surprised seeing her locked with another man. The love has ended up for him. Láďa doesn't allow to be persuaded into returning to Petra but decides to come back to the construction site. He makes his money by doing a fair job on a new modern excavator entrusted to him by his fellow workers.
hodinář Láďa Kratochvíl, později řidič
kadeřnice Petra
řidič Miky Polievka
vedoucí autoprovozu Dalibor
Pepík Němec
kantýnská Marcela
Petřin otec
Petřina matka
babička
Láďova sestra
Jirka, Láďův švagr
řidič Jan Vízner, Marcelin muž
řidič Slávek
řidič Provazník
řidič Král
stavebník Nováček
Ferda
řidič Lojza
řidič Vyskočil
řidič
zelinář Ivan
hodinářský mistr
nešikovný hodinář později pumpař
hluchoněmý hodinář
taxikář Béďa Hustoles
Hořínek, soused ve vile
zákazník zelinářství
řidič Julinek
kadeřnice
zmrzlinářka
redaktor
Miroslav Balajka, Lilian Havlíčková
Bohumír Schwarzer
Marie Ryšlinková
Ing. J. Žáček, Přemysl Háček, Vladimír Ludka, Jaroslav Rybníček, J. Cejnar
zaměstnanci Vodního díla Dalešice, Jiří Kučera, Jitka Radová, Růžena Hejsková
Štěpán Koníček (FISYO)
Na naší půdě, Mám ráda žužu, Cikánka, Vklouzlo do nás kouzlo, Kamarád
Angelo Michajlov (Na naší půdě), Bohuslav Ondráček (Mám ráda žužu), Karel Vacek (Cikánka), Angelo Michajlov (Vklouzlo do nás kouzlo), Bill Monroe (Kamarád)
Zdeněk Svěrák (Na naší půdě), Zdeněk Borovec (Mám ráda žužu), Jiří Štaidl (Vklouzlo do nás kouzlo), Marko Čermák (Kamarád)
Zdena Adamová (Na naší půdě), Naďa Urbánková (Mám ráda žužu), Jitka Molavcová (Vklouzlo do nás kouzlo), Tomáš Linka (Kamarád)
Kdo hledá zlaté dno
Who Looks for Gold
Frajeři na blátě
film
feature
narrative
Czechoslovakia
1974
1974
20 December 1974
long
93 min
Czech
Festival: 13. festival českých a slovenských filmů Praha
1975
Praha / Czechoslovakia
Jaromír Šofr
Festival: 13. filmový festival mladých Trutnov
1975
Trutnov / Czechoslovakia
Július Pántik