Do Not Call Me Major!

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1981

Production year

1980

Premiere

4 December 1981

Runtime

71 min

Category

film

Genre

detective, children

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Neříkej mi majore!

Czech title

Neříkej mi majore!

English title

Do Not Call Me Major!

Working title

Muž se sedmi holuby

Summary

The young protagonist of this 1981 family comedy is nicknamed after the hero of the famous 1970s Czechoslovak TV series 30 případů majora Zemana (Thirty Cases of Major Zeman). Fifteen-year-old Láďa Zeman, known to everyone in the small border town where he lives as “major” has a passion for detective stories. Together with his friend Janouch, he gets a chance to prove his detective abilities when he discovers that an Austrian who has come to the local pigeon show is really a diamond smuggler... This children’s adventure story, directed by Jiří Hanibal, stars Michal Hofbauer as the young Láďa. The popular child actor often cooperated with director Jindřich Polák, who cast him in the 1970s Pan Tau (Tau) TV series and in the Lucie, postrach ulice (Lucy, Terror of the Street, 1980) TV adventure. The then 19-year-old Ondřej Vetchý appears in one of his first film roles.

Synopsis

The fifteen-year old Láďa Zeman is called "major" by everybody in a small borderline town because his surname is identical with that of a TV series hero, detective Zeman, and because of his fondness for detective stories. His younger friend Janouch, a passionate pigeon fancier, shares an unusual experience with him. He had noticed that a participant in an international pigeon exhibition, an Austrian named Diesbach, transported different pigeons back across the border than those he exhibited. This year, the exhibition is taking place in the town again and Diesbach arrives, too. The boys assume that Diesbach is a spy, and they start following him. They are helped by Zuzka, the daughter of the local hotel's director, who overheard Diesbach's conversation with the herbalist Hrazdíra. The boys readily find Hrazdíra's secluded cottage but its owner surprises them as they try to search through it. Fortunately enough, they manage to run away and Hrazdíra takes them for pilferers. The boys conclude that Diesbach sends spy reports via the pigeons. They again set off to Hrazdíra's house and hide well inside, eventually finding out to their surprise that the pigeons transport diamonds in small caskets. Láďa leaves his friend patrolling and runs to the police station. When he returns with a customs officer and several policemen, the pigeons are already fluttering above their heads. But nothing is lost because the alert Janouch has managed to replace the birds in their cages. The released pigeons will thus soon be in their home birdhouse of the clocksmith Mojdl, his accomplice Diesbach, and Hrazdíra. All the smugglers are arrested and the boys receive a commendation. Only Láďa finds out that Zuzka, who he liked and who liked him, has lost patience in the meantime and begun dating another boy.

Cast

Michael Hofbauer

Láďa Zeman zvaný Major

Boris Kubíček

Franta Janouch

Pavlína Mourková

Zuzka Kohoutová

František Kokejl

Rakušan Diesbach

Karel Koloušek

bylinkář Hrazdíra

Jan Faltýnek

celník kapitán Pařízek

Miroslav Zounar

ředitel hotelu Kohout, otec Zuzky

Vladimír Ptáček

Voice by Oldřich Janovský
hodinář Mojdl

Jiří Pleskot

trafikant Tvrdek

Vlastimil Čaněk

listonoš, Láďův otec

Dáša Neblechová

Láďova matka

Ondřej Vetchý

pikolík Lojza

Jitka Zelenohorská

recepční Hanička

Lukáš Vaculík

mladík ve žlutém tričku

Jaroslav Choc

tajemník Káranský

Jiřina Bílá

venkovanka

Jiří Čada

příslušník VB

Vlastimil Čaněk ml.

rozjívený kluk

Stanislav Červený

rozjívený kluk

Jan Vokurka

rozjívený kluk

Josef Kraus (3)

host hotelu

Otto Höfer

host hotelu

Ladislav Kyrbis

železničář

Tomáš Pruka

železničář

Bohuslav Rada

řidič

Jaroslava Štrachalová

servírka

Adolf Jann

velitel VB

Václav Mašek

číšník

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Milan Vácha

Assistant Director

Robert Vacík, Magda Vodičková

Shooting Script

Jiří Hanibal

Dramaturg

Karel Cop

Director of Photography

Antonín Holub

Second Unit Photography

Michal Krob

Camera Operator

Emil Hora

Production Designer

Jaroslav Krška

Assistent Production Designer

František Vokřál

Set Designer

Milan Bábik, Karel Krejčí, Eva Slívová

Costume Designer

Marta Kaplerová

Film Editor

Zdeněk Stehlík

Sound Designer

Jiří Lenoch

Production Manager

Karel Škop

Unit Production Manager

Jiří Holeček, Juraj Zach

Unit Production Manager

Adriena Váchová

Cooperation

Lenka Rambousková (klapka), Jaroslav Trousil (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Jan Hrábek

Selected Music

Georges Bizet (Carmen /Toreadore smělý/)

Music Performed by

Pražské smyčce Jana Hrábka (Music Conducted by Jan Hrábek), FISYO (Music Conducted by Štěpán Koníček)

Songs

Jak je tajemný svět

Song Composer Jan Hrábek
Writer of Lyrics Jaroslav Machek
Singer Zdeněk Mann

Production info

Original Title

Neříkej mi majore!

Czech Title

Neříkej mi majore!

English Title

Do Not Call Me Major!

Working Title

Muž se sedmi holuby

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

detective, children

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1981

Production Year

1980

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 29 May 1980
start of filming 29 May 1980
technical Screenplay approved 26 June 1980
end of filming 21 November 1980
projection approval 12 December 1980

Premiere

premiere 4 December 1981 /suitable for youths/

Creative Group

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

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

71 min

Original length in metres

2 016 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