The Courrier Who Vanished
Country
CzechoslovakiaCopyright
1981Production year
1980—1981Premiere
16 October 1981Runtime
86 minDirector
Otakar FukaCategory
filmGenre
sci-fiTypology
featuretheatrical distributionlongOriginal title
Kam zmizel kurýrCzech title
Kam zmizel kurýrEnglish title
The Courrier Who VanishedWorking title
Kurýr ze souhvězdí PegasSummary
Filmmakers have been drawn to the short stories and novellas of Josef Nesvadba on numerous occasions. However, the sci-fi film Kam zmizel kurýr (The Courier Who Vanished, 1981), directed by Otakar Fuka, was made according to an original script penned by the popular writer. The courier of the film’s title is an alien who crash landed on Earth in the 17th century and has since been secretly manipulating human history. The protagonist is an extra-terrestrial envoy who arrives in Prague disguised as “Jones”, a Czech language student from Australia. The envoy’s real task is to find the alien courier and bring him back home. Young sci-fi writer Marcela becomes a witness to Jones’s quest... The film’s lead roles were played by Jan Kanyza and Eva Jakoubková. In one absorbing sequence, Jones uncovers “evidence” of the courier’s existence in, among other things, earlier Czech sci-fi films. Kam zmizel kurýr thus contains clips from Muž z prvního století (The Man from the First Century, 1961), Ikarie XB 1 (Icarus XB 1, 1963), Vynález zkázy (An Invention for Destruction, 1958), Baron Prášil (Baron Münchausen, 1961), as well as Fuka’s own Akce Bororo (Bororo Operation, 1972).
Note
The film includes parts of Czech sci-fi films Baron Münchhausen (1961, dir. Karel Zeman), An Invention for Destruction (1958, dir. Karel Zeman), The Man from the First Century (1961, dir. Oldřich Lipský), Icarus XB-1 (dir. Jindřich Polák), Bororo Operation (1972, dir. Otakar Fuka).
Film online
Photos
Cast
Jan Kanyza
Michael Allan Jones
Eva Jakoubková
novinářka Marcela Vosecká
Karel Houska
docent Štafa
Jiří Bruder
recepční Jandák
Vladimír Salač
archivář Diviš
Zdeněk Matouš
profesor Coutou
Václav Kotva
Láska
Miloslav Štibich
Svačina, znalec díla Julese Vernea
Dana Homolová
Michele
Jana Altmannová
Jeanne
Ladislav Lahoda
Voice by Bořivoj Navrátil
kurýr
Jiří Bukvaj
cizinec
Milada Ježková
vrátná v knihovně
Adolf Široký
divák
Zdeněk Srstka
taxikář
Crew and creators
Director
Second Unit Director
Assistant Director
Continuity
Screenstory
Screenplay
Shooting Script
Dramaturg
Director of Photography
Second Unit Photography
Camera Operator
Production Designer
Assistent Production Designer
Set Designer
Bedřich Čermák, Josef Müller, Václav Kozel
Costume Designer
Costumes
Make-Up Artist
Film Editor
Assistant Film Editor
Sound Designer
Production Manager
Unit Production Manager
Karel Prchal, Vladimír Tišer
Unit Production Manager
Václav Veruněk
Cooperation
Vítězslava Marčíková (klapka), Jan Kuděla (fotograf)
Music
Music Composed by
Music Performed by
FISYO (Music Conducted by František Belfín)
Production info
Original Title
Kam zmizel kurýr
Czech Title
Kam zmizel kurýr
English Title
The Courrier Who Vanished
Working Title
Kurýr ze souhvězdí Pegas
Category
film
Typology
featuretheatrical distribution
Genre
sci-fi
Origin country
Czechoslovakia
Copyright
1981
Production Year
1980—1981
Production specifications
literary Screenplay approved 31 October 1980
start of filming 6 December 1980
technical Screenplay approved 31 December 1980
end of filming 19 March 1981
projection approval 15 April 1981
Premiere
premiere 16 October 1981 /suitable for youths/
Production
Copyright Holders
Distribution
Creative Group
Dramaturgická skupina Drahoslava Makovičky, Drahoslav Makovička (vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny)
Technical info
Duration typology
feature film
Duration in minutes
86 min
Original length in metres
2 358 meters
Distribution carrier
16mm, 35mm
Aspect ratio
1:1,37
Colour
colour
Sound
sound
Sound system/format
mono
Versions
Czech
Dialogue languages
Czech, French
Subtitles languages
without subtitles
Opening/End credits languages
Czech
