Fires and Burnt Out Places

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1980

Production year

1980

Premiere

27 February 1981

Runtime

92 min

Category

film

Genre

psychological

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Požáry a spáleniště

Czech title

Požáry a spáleniště

English title

Fires and Burnt Out Places

Working title

Okna bez mříží

Summary

Litvínov-born writer Jiří Švejda made his film debut with the script for Křehké vztahy (Delicate Relationships, 1979), directed by Juraj Herz and inspired by a book by Václav Dušek. A year later Švejda adapted his own novel, this time for director Antonín Kachlík. Požáry a spáleniště (Fires and Burnt Out Places, 1980) tells the story of two friends from university, whose moral fibre is tested when they are both employed at a brickyard. The plot follows a somewhat thorny path before arriving at the “correct” outcome. Otakar Maška, a member of the state enterprise’s management, employs his old friend Lumír Brabec. Thanks to an all-embracing interest in construction Lumír quickly works his way up from storekeeper to technical engineer. It comes as a nasty surprise to the conscientious workhorse to learn that Otakar, whose sister Lumír has recently married, has all the while been stealing socialist property… The film is a sterling example of a Barrandov film studios production fulfilling the political demands of the time. The lead roles were played by Zdeněk Maryška (Lumír) and Josef Hajdučík (Otakar).

Synopsis

Research institute director Maška and his family are having supper in his plush villa. The arrival of an unexpected visitor pleases the director's son Otakar - it is his former schoolmate and friend Lumír Brabec. Brabec has broken off relations with his family and left his job and the town where he used to live. Otakar is delighted to see him and employs him in the brickworks where he is one of the managers. He even puts him up in the villa. Otakar's attractive sister Lída is just finishing university and she takes a fancy to the handsome Lumír. Although she has an official suitor in the shape of Dr Polák, she prefers Lumír and the two become lovers. Lumír starts off in dispatch. He is honest and hardworking and some of the practices in the stores astonish him. Scarce glazed ceiling elements are listed as test samples and so a great many of them do not appear in the final production figures. Otakar is just completing construction of a new house for his wife and the child they are expecting. Mrs Maška catches her daughter in Lumír's room and throws the tenant out, but Lída is obstinate and finally gets her parents to accept Lumír as her bridegroom. He is then promoted to technologist in the brickworks and gets a flat. The wedding takes place. Lumír soon discovers that Otakar, now his brother-in-law has been involved in major fraud - the "test" products have been sold under the counter. Lumír is honest and honourable, refuses to yield to Otakar's blackmail and reports the matter to the police. Otakar is arrested. Lída leaves Lumír, and only her father apologizes to him for the family.

Cast

Zdeněk Maryška

technolog Lumír Brabec

Karel Dellapina

Voice by Václav Švorc
ředitel výzkumného ústavu Maška

Jana Ebertová

Maškova žena

Sylvia Turbová

Lída, dcera Maškových

Josef Hajdučík

Otakar, syn Maškových

Dana Maříková

Jana, mladší dcera Maškových

Božena Böhmová

Lumírova matka

Bohumil Šmída

Lumírův otec

František Houdek

RNDr. Karel Polák

Jana Pragerová

Irena, Otakarova žena

Karel Semerád

cihlářský mistr Petr Čepek

Miroslav Bezdíček

vedoucí expedice Michal Pavelka

Vladimír Hrabánek

cihlář Brousek

Jan Kuželka

cihlář Pitaš

Mojmír Heger

technolog Ing. Pavel Slepička

Jiří Lír

hlavní mechanik Ing. Grešl

Oldřich Vykypěl

ředitel cihelny Bárta

Hana Zaoralová

laborantka Marie

Ladislav Kolář

Lídin milenec Jožan

Jiří Růžička st.

zákazník Bůžek

Jiří Růžička

tlustý mladík na svatbě

Zdeněk Dvořák

člen Čepkovy party

Petr Hrobař

hudebník

Oldřich Kučera

hudebník

František Petržel

hudebník

Hana Štolcpartová

Zuzana

Adolf Böhm

starší muž

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Jiří Růžička st.

Assistant Director

Zdeněk Tyc, Jarmila Čajová

Based on

Jiří Švejda (Požáry a spáleniště – román)

Screenplay

Jiří Švejda

Shooting Script

Antonín Kachlík

Director of Photography

Josef Pávek

Second Unit Photography

Kamil Kadeřábek

Camera Operator

Ota Kopřiva

Production Designer

Bohumil Pokorný

Assistent Production Designer

Olga Rosenfelderová

Set Designer

Jiří Matějka, Eva Slívová, Karel Vaňásek

Costume Designer

Marta Kaplerová

Assistant Film Editor

Anna Mejtská

Sound Designer

Adolf Böhm

Production Manager

Jan Syrový

Unit Production Manager

Vladimíra Kopecká, Věra Lukášová

Unit Production Manager

Lidia Kravková

Cooperation

Ivana Malíková (klapka), Karel Ješátko (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Josef Boháč

Music Performed by

soubor písní a tanců Hradišťan, FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín)

Songs

La Paloma

Song Composer Sebastian de Yradier

Zaspala nevěsta

Singer sbor

Veselo, muziko, vesele nehrajte

Singer sbor

Production info

Original Title

Požáry a spáleniště

Czech Title

Požáry a spáleniště

English Title

Fires and Burnt Out Places

Working Title

Okna bez mříží

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

psychological

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1980

Production Year

1980

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 31 July 1979
technical Screenplay approved 3 March 1980
start of filming 4 March 1980
end of filming 26 September 1980
projection approval 26 September 1980
withdrawal from distribution 30 June 1990

Premiere

premiere 27 February 1981 /unsuitable for youths/

Creative Group

Dramaturgická skupina Karla Valtery, Karel Valtera (vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

92 min

Original length in metres

2 588 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: 19. festival českých a slovenských filmů Kladno

1981
Kladno / Czechoslovakia
Antonín Kachlík