A Sportsmen’s Feast

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1981

Production year

1981

Premiere

15 October 1982

Runtime

92 min

Category

film

Genre

slapstick

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Poslední leč

Czech title

Poslední leč

English title

A Sportsmen’s Feast

Summary

Boleslav (“Bolek”) Polívka, the star of Brno’s Divadlo na provázku theatre, has enjoyed a film career spanning several decades. He started out on-screen in the 1970s as a television supporting actor but it was recordings of his theatrical performances that brought Polívka to wider public attention (Pezza versus Čorba, 1975; Trosečník [Castaway], Am a Ea, both 1977; Commedia del arte, 1980). Towards the end of the 1970s, director Vladimír Sís adapted for the screen two plays in which Polívka had starred – Balada pro banditu (Ballad for a Bandit, 1978) and Poslední leč (1981). The theatrical version, much loved by audiences, was written by writer-actors Jiří Pecha and Polívka, and intended as a vehicle for themselves. Surprisingly, two “stolen” characters appear in the story: the old game warden, taken from the novel Pohádka máje (May Tale) by Vilém Mrštík; and the title protagonist, who comes by way of a work by contemporary playwright Ladislav Smoček, Podivné odpoledne doktora Zvonka Burkeho (Doctor Zvonek Burke’s Strange Afternoon). The simple story involves the annual visit of a doctor to see the game warden. Around this simple backdrop, both men experience a variety of unbelievable fantastic adventures. Sís’s experimental film, which is essentially a play on a play, frames a conversation between Polívka and Pecha and the various characters and situations they encounter. The actors fill the two protagonists with their ample theatrical experiences, and, in-character, unleash their wild imaginations. In the end, the protagonists fall victim to the reality of the story: Burke’s friend is brought down like a wild deer by a gunshot, but the game warden is the one dying. But, once again, everything is shown to be merely just another play on the truth. Poslední leč is an “acting concert” in which the two lead characters give themselves endless space to present their absurdist theatrical sensibilities. A walk through a dense forest, or a tough ascent to a mountain lodge merely serve as vehicles for the author-performers to engage in pantomime-like verbal banter. The film, which goes against the grain of movies made during this era at Prague’s Barrandov Film Studios, continues to this day to serve as a testament to the talents of Bolek Polívka and Jiří Pecha.

Synopsis

In a garden backyard, the actors Bolek Polívka and Jiří Pecha talk about the characters of their play: an old game warden whom they borrowed from Vilém Mrštík's novel The May Fairy-Tale, and a doctor borrowed from Ladislav Smoček's drama The Odd Afternoon of Doctor Zvonek Burke. The two actors project their theatre experience and imagination to their protagonists. The game warden and Burke meet and experience some unbelievable adventures in their fantasies. They build a forest in the room out of small trees and get ready for a hunt. A washbasin is turned into a forest well, a hat into a bird's nest and the glass bedpan, which is called "pheasant" in Czech, becomes a real feathered bird for them. The room turns into a cozy gamekeeper's lodge and the indestructible dreamers set off to Roe Deer's Hill. The two friends also pursue fishing. The game warden removes antlers from the wall and imitates a deer and Burke shoots him with a rifle. But the game warden is really dying as a hit deer, no matter how strenuously Burke calls for a care person. The scene penetrates to the reality of natural scenery and, speedily, to the reality of backdrops. The actors leave, the sound engineers pack their equipment and the propmen clear the stage.

Film online

Cast

Boleslav Polívka

dr. Zvonek Burke

Jiří Pecha

revírník

Hana Kaslová

Dobruše I.

Ivana Kaslová

Dobruše II.

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Jiří Kratochvíl

Assistant Director

Magda Vodičková

Based on

Milan Uhde (Poslední leč – divadelní hra)

Shooting Script

Vladimír Sís

Dramaturg

Miroslav Vaic

Director of Photography

Viktor Růžička

Second Unit Photography

Vladimír Smutný

Production Designer

Bohumil Nový

Assistent Production Designer

František Vokřál

Set Designer

Jaroslav Chytrý, Karel Karas, Ladislav Winkelhöfer

Assistant Film Editor

Alena Chvojková, Anna Mejtská

Sound Designer

Jiří Lenoch

Production Manager

Jaroslav Vágner

Unit Production Manager

Pavel Nový, Roman Smítko

Unit Production Manager

Aleš Komárek

Cooperation

Nataša Culíková (klapka), Jiří Kučera (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Jiří Bulis

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by Mario Klemens)

Production info

Original Title

Poslední leč

Czech Title

Poslední leč

English Title

A Sportsmen’s Feast

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

slapstick

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1981

Production Year

1981

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 31 July 1981
technical Screenplay approved 4 August 1981
start of filming 4 August 1981
end of filming 27 November 1981
projection approval 23 December 1981

Premiere

premiere 15 October 1982 /suitable for youths/

Creative Group

Dramaturgická skupina Drahoslava Makovičky, Drahoslav Makovička (vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

92 min

Original length in metres

2 607 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