Science fiction works written by Josef Nesvadba have been the driving force behind the creation of numerous Czech films. What's more, the author would often get involved in the screenwriting for a movie. Howevr, unlike Tarzanova smrt (Tarzan’s Death, 1962), Blbec z Xeenemünde (The Idiot from Xeenemünde, 1962) and Ztracená tvář (The Lost Face, 1965), Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem (I’ll Get Up and Scald Myself with Tea Tomorrow, 1977) differs in that its screenplay was written by Jindřich Polák and Miloš Macourek, based on Nesvadba’s short story. The plot takes place in a future where travelling back and forth in time is a commonplace tourist entertainment. However, a trio of Nazi sympathisers decide to travel back to 1944 in order to change the course of history by helping Hitler win the war with the use of a stolen thermonuclear bomb. In an unexpected twist, the time machine operator Karel Bureš chokes on his breakfast roll and is replaced by his virtuous twin brother Jan, a man who is ignorant of the purpose of the mission and not entirely in favour of the journey. Other passengers include an American married couple and flight attendant Helena. Although the mission fails, Jan must return to the past twice again to put a definitive end to the Nazi trio’s plans. As the story unfolds through a number of time paradoxes and mistaken identities, doubles of various characters appear… The cleverly built narrative uses a playful, comic plot to present an ambitious warning to audiences, something typical of Nesvadba’s writing. Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem is above all a successful combination of Macourek’s screenwriting inventiveness and Polák’s lightness of directing. Cameraman Jan Kališ, who had previously collaborated with Polák in the making of the comedy Klaun Ferdinand a raketa (Clown Ferdinand and the Rocket, 1962) and the legendary science fiction film Ikarie XB 1 (Voyage to the End of the Universe, 1963), effectively tackles the need to evoke different time frames as well as the special effects side of the feature. The success of this story of parallel histories also stems in no small part from its cast. The lead dual role was delivered by Petr Kostka while popular performers of “good” characters – Vlastimil Brodský, Jiří Sovák and Vladimír Menšík – appear here as the three Nazis. Otto Šimánek, well-known as Pan Tau (Tau) in Polák’s eponymous television series, plays one of the American tourists.
Universum, a travel agency of Prague, organizes adventurous journey to the past. Three Nazis, named Abard, Bauer and Kraus want to make use of it and give to Hitler a hydrogen bomb they had stolen in a museum. At the end of 1944 the bomb should help the Third Reich win the War. A corrupted pilot Karel Bureš promises to take them to the past. The Nazis are in a very good health state, due to the anti-ageing pills. However, their plan comes to nothing. On 1 June, the day of their flight, Karel gets suffocated by a roll and his twin brother, a designer Jan, who is completely different character then Karel, gets scalded by hot tea. In fear to tell the truth to Karel's girlfriend Eva, Jan pretends to be Karel. He takes the flight for Karel in a rocket, where an elderly American couple travels together with the three Nazis. A surprised stewardess Helena watches Karel's strange behaviour - a former womanizer turned into a nice and polite gentleman. Despite Jan's resistance, the Nazis push through to the cockpit and Bauer lands in the war-time Germany. All are arrested. Hitler rejects the Nazis assistance - by a mistake they unfortunately landed three years earlier: it is December 8th 1941, the period of successful German war expeditions and Japanese alliance. Only Kraus, Bauer and Bureš succeed in running away from execution. They return to the period shortly before the takeoff. All the travellers are alive and the three back-comers have their doubles. Jan travels to the past two more times before he succeeds in depriving the world from Nazis. In his double life he becomes Karel, Eva's husband -to-be and also Jan, a happily in love with the pretty stewardess Helena.
The song in the scene of Hitler watching the documentaries of the fall of the Third Reich was composed for German movie Tango Notturno (1937, director Fritz Kirchhoff).
konstruktér Jan Bureš/pilot Karel Bureš, Janovo dvojče
Voice by Jiří Schmitzer /sturmbannführera Klause Abarda v mladých letech/
nacista Klaus Abard/sturmbannführer Klaus Abard v mladých letech
nacista Rolf Kraus
nacista Ing. Bauer
americká turistka Shirley Whiteová
americký turista Patrick, manžel Whiteové
letuška Helena Máchová
Kroupa
Kroupova žena
Eva, dcera Kroupových, Karlova dívka
Rousek, Karlův nadřízený
šéfpilot Robert Nol
Markéta, Nolova žena
Adolf Hitler
Voice by Jiří Hálek
Joseph Goebbels
Heinrich Himmler
říšský maršál Hermann Göring
MUDr. Kryl
příslušník SS Schmidt
příslušník SS Steiberger
důstojník SS
Voice by Soběslav Sejk
nacista Streich
nacista Fritz Klein
nacista Schönfeld
nacista Joachim Braun
řidič nákladního auta
komplic v Universu
lékař SS
lékař pohotovosti
Voice by Oldřich Lukeš
admirál Wolf
Becher
květinářka
dívka u přepážky Universa
pracovník půjčovny automobilů
sekretářka půjčovny automobilů
operátor Universa
mechanik v Universu
stenografka
Voice by Jiří Havel
artista Petr Kroupa, Evin bratr
stará dáma s holí
Voice by Roman Skamene
příslušník VB
příslušník VB
příslušník VB
příslušník VB
zaměstnanec u baru
říšský ministr Martin Bormann
barmanka
nacistka
německý důstojník
zaměstnanec u rampy
pilot
zaměstnanec Universa
zaměstnanec Universa
gestapák
gestapák
gestapák
důstojník
důstojník
hosteska
hosteska
hosteska
Voice by Nelly Gaierová
dáma se psem
Hitlerův pobočník
svobodník
poručík SS, hlídka u vjezdu
dubl za Petra Kostku – pád na skládce
dubl za Petra Kostku
dubl za Petra Kostku
dubl za Jiřího Sováka
hlas jedné z hostesek
hlas z hlášení Universa
hlas z rozhlasu
Zdena Pavlátová, Lada Vacková
Vladimír Mácha, Rudolf Příhoda, Vladimír Slepička
Vladimír Petřina, Alena Šedová, Jiří Farkaš, Rudolf Hammer (masky autentických postav), Miloslav Jandera (masky autentických postav)
RNDr. Jiří Mrázek, CSc., Zbyšek Svoboda
Jitka Radová (klapka), Jiří Kučera (fotograf)
FISYO (Music Conducted by Štěpán Koníček)
Song Composer Hans-Otto BorgmannHans Fritz Beckmann
Writer of Lyrics Hans Fritz Beckmann
Singer Pola Negri
Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem
Zítra vstanu a opařím se čajem
I’ll Get Up and Scald Myself with Tea Tomorrow
film
featuretheatrical distribution
comedy, sci-fi
Czechoslovakia
1977
1975—1977
literary Screenplay approved 1 June 1975
start of filming 15 September 1975
technical Screenplay approved 10 November 1975
end of filming 31 January 1977
projection approval 16 February 1977
festival premiere 16 June 1977 (28. filmový festival pracujících – léto ´77)
premiere 12 August 1977 /suitable for youths/
Dramaturgická skupina Miroslava Hladkého, Miroslav Hladký (vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny)
feature film
90 min
2 590 meters
16mm, 35mm
1:1,66
colour
sound
mono
Czech
Czech, English, German
without subtitles
Czech
Festival: 12. mezinárodní festival fantastických filmů a hororů Sitges
1979
Sitges / Spain
Jindřich Polák