Flying Saucers over our Village
Country
CzechoslovakiaCopyright
1977Production year
1976—1977Premiere
25 November 1977Runtime
89 minDirector
Jaromil JirešCategory
filmGenre
fantastic, comedyTypology
featuretheatrical distributionlongOriginal title
Talíře nad Velkým MalíkovemCzech title
Talíře nad Velkým MalíkovemEnglish title
Flying Saucers over our VillageSummary
This bizarre 1976 sci-fi comedy represents something of an oddity within director Jaromil Jireš’s filmography. Jireš co-wrote the film with Mária Rudlovčáková, who also assisted in his adaptation of a novel by author Vladimír Páral, Mladý muž a bílá velryba (The Young Man and the White Whale, 1977). Vlastimil Brodský plays road repairer Huba, who is distracted from his work by an interest in the cosmos. Though at odds with his job, the hobby proves useful when an alien spaceship crash lands at the city dump. The aliens quickly assimilate into human society. The humanoid alien BA-HU falls in love with the beautiful Maryna; his colleague, professor LU-PU, helps Huba repair the roads in exchange for his helping to repair the ship’s chronometer... Cleverly avoiding the need for any special effects, this feature sees Luděk Sobota playing BA-HU. Iva Janžurová, Dana Medřická and Jan Tříska also appear.
Synopsis
The roadmender František Huba living in a market-town Velký Malíkov is more interested in craters on the Moon than in holes on the district roads. When fishing he chats with other Malíkov inhabitants and thus he misses the extraterrestrials' arrival, but later he meets them. Excited with the extraordinary event he announces his co-inhabitants that ETs will repair the road. No-one, however, believes him. Malíkov celebrates five hundred years' anniversary. One of the events of the celebration is a ceremonial of unveiling a bust of Janata of Janatov, the town founder. The assembled people, together with an ET called BA-HU, cannot wait to see the statue unveiled. The veil slides down and all stare at a woman's nude statue. "You could come to an agreement about Janata's appearance so here you have Janata's wife", says sculptor Mimra. BA-HU asks František to repair an extraterrestrial chronometer. He is busy, though. BA-HU notices a beautiful girl Maryna among the visitors and reveals an emotion inside himself that he has never felt before. The ET professor LU-PU promises Huba to repair the road in the exchange of repairing of the chronometer, and as an advance he gives him an all-knowing carrot. Huba invites all the village people to an Evening of Questions and Responses but a goat Matyáš eats the carrot. LU-PU comes to the Village Centre and watches people. Finally he feels something is beating in his chest. Huba wants to leave with extraterrestrials but finally he grasps a fork and starts repairing the road. It's a miracle for the Malíkov people as it is the first time they see him working. The space ship departs but BA-HU in love remains here.
Photos
Cast
Vlastimil Brodský
cestář František Huba
Jan Tříska
důlní tesař Jaroslav Šalánek
Iva Janžurová
vedoucí Zverimexu Viola Zlatníčková
Míla Myslíková
Zmatlíková
Josef Větrovec
řidič Lojza Hrubec
Waldemar Matuška
sochař Mimra
Petr Nárožný
doktor Jiří Doktor
Dana Medřická
Eliška, Doktorova žena
Ladislav Pešek
Václav Hrabě zvaný Šlejfírna
Luděk Sobota
mimozemšťan BA-HU alias Ferda Vidrmoc
Josef Kemr
mimozemšťan profesor LU-PU
Jiří Hálek
hostinský Tonda Cink
Jarmila Horská
Růžena, Cinkova žena
Karel Augusta
řidič Jožo
Jelena Šebestová
Maryna
Jiří Prýmek
profesor
Marie Rosůlková
babička
Jiří Světlík
nahý cyklista
Tomáš Vacek
Petr, syn Cinkových
Olga Blechová
dívka
Rudolf Hrušínský ml.
řidič autobusu
Karel Hovorka
muž s pírkem
Ferdinand Šnajberk
kapelník
Antonín Jedlička
muž ve felicii
Marie Lhotáková
žena ve felicii
Ivan Bernášek
tanečník
Jan Čančík
tanečník
Anna Čumpelíková
tanečnice
Jiří Doležal
tanečník
Josef Dubský
tanečník
Pavel Fiala (tanečník)
tanečník
Marcela Hlaváčová
tanečnice
Helena Chroustová
tanečnice
Soňa Kultová
tanečnice
Jitka Látalová
tanečnice
Stanislav Malík
tanečník
Eva Pazourová
tanečnice
Eva Polednová
tanečnice
Libuše Renéová
tanečnice
Miroslav Říha
tanečník
Zuzana Sochorová
tanečnice
Don Sparling
tanečník
Helena Šalová
tanečnice
Jaroslav Tomsa
tanečník
Jiří Trapek
tanečník
Jan Hlaváč (hudebník)
hudebník
Jiří Hudeček (hudebník)
hudebník
Kliment Navrátil
hudebník
Leo Neumann
hudebník
Miroslav Jíra
dubl za Vlastimila Brodského
Vlastimila Vlková
venkovanka
Petr Voříšek
kluk s rádiem
Evžen Baura
tanečník
Crew and creators
Director
Second Unit Director
Assistant Director
Continuity
Screenstory
Screenplay
Shooting Script
Dramaturg
Director of Photography
Second Unit Photography
Camera Operator
Bohumír Schwarzer, Jiří Ondráček
Production Designer
Assistent Production Designer
Set Designer
Jiří Žák, Vladimír Ježek, L. Schmaus, Ladislav Winkelhöfer
Costume Designer
Costumes
Make-Up Artist
Film Editor
Assistant Film Editor
Sound Designer
Pavel Jelínek, Antonín Jedlička (zvukové efekty)
Production Manager
Unit Production Manager
Karel Prchal, Lev Veltrubský
Unit Production Manager
Daniela Norová
Cooperation
Olga Kourová (klapka), Jan Kuděla (fotograf)
Music
Music Composed by
Music Performed by
FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín), Orchestr Ladislava Štaidla
Songs
Ať žije země, která se točí
Song Composer Ladislav Štaidl
Writer of Lyrics Ivo Fischer
Singer Waldemar Matuška
Žena, žena, žena
Song Composer Ladislav Štaidl
Writer of Lyrics Ivo Fischer
Singer Waldemar Matuška
Kolíne, Kolíne
Song Composer František Kmoch
Writer of Lyrics František Kudrna
Singer sbor
Kolo, kolo mlýnský
Singer dětský sbor
Nepij, Jano, nepij vodu
Singer sbor
Noc otvírá zlatnický krám
Song Composer Ladislav Štaidl
Writer of Lyrics Ivo Fischer
Singer Waldemar Matuška
Oženil bych sa, nemožem
Singer sbor
Production info
Original Title
Talíře nad Velkým Malíkovem
Czech Title
Talíře nad Velkým Malíkovem
English Title
Flying Saucers over our Village
Category
film
Typology
featuretheatrical distribution
Genre
fantastic, comedy
Origin country
Czechoslovakia
Copyright
1977
Production Year
1976—1977
Production specifications
literary Screenplay approved 4 February 1976
start of filming 21 July 1976
technical Screenplay approved 24 August 1976
end of filming 8 March 1977
projection approval 21 March 1977
Premiere
premiere 25 November 1977 /suitable for youths/
Production
Copyright Holders
Studio
Distribution
Creative Group
Dramaturgická skupina Miroslava Hladkého, Miroslav Hladký (vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny)
Technical info
Duration typology
feature film
Duration in minutes
89 min
Original length in metres
2 568 meters
Distribution carrier
16mm, 35mm
Aspect ratio
1:1,66
Colour
colour
Sound
sound
Sound system/format
mono
Versions
Czech
Dialogue languages
Czech
Subtitles languages
without subtitles
Opening/End credits languages
Czech
