Loving James
Country
CzechoslovakiaCopyright
1982Production year
1981—1982Premiere
10 December 1982Runtime
97 minDirector
Václav MatějkaCategory
filmGenre
psychologicalTypology
featuretheatrical distributionlongOriginal title
Má láska s JakubemCzech title
Má láska s JakubemEnglish title
Loving JamesWorking title
MasopustSummary
Alongside regime-ordered political propaganda, director Václav Matějka also turned his attentions towards less contentious fare during the 1970s and early 80s. This film from 1982 tells the story of young teacher Petra Jánská (Zlata Adamovská), whose arrival at a small town school is driven by her desire to be closer to her boyfriend. While the idealistic teacher tries to help improve the education of her new pupils, her lover Jakub (Ivan Vyskočil) attempts to manage a tough situation afflicting his employment at a local paper mill. The small town environment is riddled with lies and machinations. Petra does her best to sift through all of this to help a pupil, Pavel. But the end result of her efforts is an unexpected tragedy. Matějka also served as screenwriter for Má láska s Jakubem (Loving James) and spiced up the tale with sequences featuring abstract “metaphorical” masked characters.
Synopsis
The Shrovetide festivity mingles with the experiences of the young teacher Petra. She has taken up the job of Czech teacher in a small town for the sake of her beloved Jakub who is the deputy director of the local paper-mill. Jakub hopes to be promoted to the position of the director Tomovský who is leaving for Prague. The paper-mill built flats for its employees instead of a kindergarten. But as soon as the third shift is introduced, the employees have no place to put their children. Tomovský blames Jakub for the situation and Jakub tolerates it for career reasons. Petra discovers a catastrophic lack of knowledge in her pupils and selflessly begins to make up for the defficiencies with them. But she does not meet any understanding from her older colleagues because she disturbs the well-established standstill. Petra is worried about one pupil, Pavel. The boy often runs away from both home and school and is under the influence of his brother Jirka who ended up oin a wheelchair after suffering a severe injury. Petra finds it difficult to uncover the core of the problem in the petit-bourgeois town where everybody knows each other and no one wants to talk about anything. Last year, the excellent student Jirka successfully passed the entrance exams to a grammar school but was not admitted due to too many applicants. His mother took a bottle of cognac and set off to visit Tomovský - a member of the entrance commission - to ask him to intercede for her son. However, the father of the boys, who works as a foreman in the paper-mill, has been a big critic of the director, and Toovský thus not only refuses to help but moreover makes public the reported attempt to bribe him. Jirka jumps out of the window in despair. Petra can't stomach Jakub's careerism and finishes with him. During a ball attended by the entire town, the young teacher takes the director aside and harshly reproaches him for getting even through children. Pavel overhears it by accident and comes to Petra to express his thanks. Before the ball is over, the director learns that his son, a talented hockey player who is the reason for his moving to Prague, has died in a car accident. Jakub tries to live with his ex-girlfriend Marie, but realizes that the only thing which unites them is loneliness, and he finds his disguised love - Petra - in the Shrovetide whirl.
Photos
Cast
Zlata Adamovská
učitelka Petra Jánská/maska cikánky
Ivan Vyskočil
náměstek Ing. Jakub Horec, Petřin přítel
Josef Vinklář
ředitel papírny Martin Tomšovský/maska rychtáře
Karolina Slunéčková
učitelka Věra Tomšovská, ředitelova manželka
Martin Růžek
ředitel školy Kuneš
Vlasta Žehrová
Máša, členka souboru Komenium
Jan Hrušínský
Jarda, Mášin ženich
Jan Hartl
Tomáš/maska žalobce
Nina Popelíková
učitelka Maruška Zemánková
Zdena Hadrbolcová
učitelka Jarmila Nováková
Jana Švandová
Ing. Marie Brožová/maska soudce
Ladislav Frej
učitel Václav Rys, zástupce ředitele
Jana Gýrová
učitelka Drahuna
Petr Pelzer
mistr v papírně Karel Horák
František Řehák
Horec, Jakubův otec
Jana Leichtová
Klára, členka souboru Komenium
Milan Riehs
Ing. Lhoták
Hana Pastejříková
Helena, Jakubova švagrová
Gustav Bubník
Ivan, syn Tomšovských
Ilona Svobodová
Eva, Ivanova přítelkyně
Petr Bosák
Pavel, Horákův syn
Tomáš Vacek
Jirka, Pavlův bratr
Věra Galatíková
Slávka Horáková, Pavlova a Jirkova matka
Jiří Kodeš
tělocvikář Pavla Bárta
Taťána Bártová
učitelka/maska žitný
Hana Brejchová
učitelka/maska ovesný
Naděžda Prchalová
učitelka/svatebčanka
Hana Nachtmanová
maska matky masopustu
Jitka Zelenohorská
zdravotní sestra Alena
Ferdinand Krůta
Mášin otec
Míla Myslíková
Mášina matka
Jaroslava Tichá
učitelka
Alena Konopíková
učitelka
Renáta Doleželová
sekretářka
Karel Urbánek
MUDr. Slezák
Bronislav Poloczek
Honza, Jakubův bratr
Karel Chromík
Hanuš, otec Věry Tomšovské
Zdeněk Hradilák
předseda CZV KSČ
Miroslav Rous
školní inspektor Jaroslav Pouznar
František Baťka
školník
Jaroslav Pešek
maska exekutora
Stanislava Coufalová
pacientka/maska šaška s flétnou
Václav Hold
cvalík Čenda
Iva Hüttnerová
úřednice MNV Tánská
Radomil Čech
maska muže s medvědem
Antonín Gondolán
maska dědka houslisty
Jan Doubrava
maska flašinetáře
Ondřej Gondolán
maska starého cikána
Jaroslava Gondolánová
maska cikánky s vějířem
Monika Gondolánová
maska staré cikánky
Soňa Gondolánová
maska trumpetisty
Marie Gondolánová
maska staré cikánky
Jana Hlaváčková
maska smrťáka se psem
Jan Hannich
maska žebráka
Roman Hemala
příslušník VB/svatebčan
Eva Horká
žákyně Maruška
Miloslav Homola
číšník
Mnislav Hofmann
svatebčan
Libuše Geprtová
matrikářka
Marcela Burdová
Maruška
Veronika Jeníková
dívka
Pavla Vojáčková
dívka
Vítězslav Jirsák
lékař
Václav Král
maska policajta/svatebčan
Jiří Kopta
kamarád
Daniel Rous
kamarád
Vratislav Marek
maska starce s kočárem
Eva Jeníčková
maska akrobatky
Libuše Matějová
vrchní sestra
Ivana Mervartová
maska nevěsty
Kateřina Růžičková
maska pozounista
Michal Cihla
šplhoun Vítek
Vladimír Pospíšil
mistr v továrně
Markéta Pastejříková
Honzova dcera
Martin Pastejřík
Honzův syn
Zdeněk Podhůrský
muž v nemocnici
Hana Mášová
maska bubeníka
Josef Přibyl
maska houslisty
René Netopilík
maska dědka s fajfkou
Petr Rychetský
maska harmonikáře
Hana Sudolská
maska klarinetisty
Lenka Štefková
maska smrťáka s kosou
Jiří Schmiedt
mladý chlapec
Ilona Šebitová
pihovatá Helča
Karel Texel
vytáhlý Karel
Jaroslav Tomsa
řidič náklaďáku
Karel Vaněk (3)
muž s maskou koně
Apolena Veldová
servírka
Jolana Zelinková
servírka
Slávka Hamouzová
svatebčanka
Petr Šlechta
muzikant
Jakub Dvořák
žák
Tomáš Chadim
žák
Regina Zahradníková
žákyně
členové Vysokoškolské taneční skupiny
Crew and creators
Director
Second Unit Director
Vítězslav Kulle
Assistant Director
Continuity
Screenstory
Screenplay
Shooting Script
Dramaturg
Director of Photography
Second Unit Photography
Camera Operator
Production Designer
Assistent Production Designer
Set Designer
Miroslav Buberle, Jaroslav Chytrý, Karel Karas, Ladislav Winkelhöfer
Costume Designer
Jarmila Konečná, Katarína Kissoczyová (masopustní masky), Irena Marečková (masopustní masky)
Costumes
Make-Up Artist
Film Editor
Assistant Film Editor
Sound Designer
Production Manager
Unit Production Manager
Tomáš Baloun, Eva Charvátová, Iva Šetková
Unit Production Manager
Vojtěch Panáček
Cooperation
Zdeněk Dukát (fotograf), Miroslav Jirsa (fotograf), Vladimír Souček (fotograf)
Music
Songs
Bez názvu
Song Composer Petr Hapka
Writer of Lyrics Zdeněk Rytíř
Singer Jan Hartl [dab]Karel Zich
Mezi námi dvouma, láska nejstálejší
Živijó, živijó
Singer sbor
Něco za cibuli, něco za křen
Singer sbor
Masopust přišel
Singer sbor
Production info
Original Title
Má láska s Jakubem
Czech Title
Má láska s Jakubem
English Title
Loving James
Working Title
Masopust
Category
film
Typology
featuretheatrical distribution
Genre
psychological
Origin country
Czechoslovakia
Copyright
1982
Production Year
1981—1982
Production specifications
literary Screenplay approved 25 March 1981
technical Screenplay approved 27 July 1981
start of filming 28 July 1981
end of filming 11 May 1982
projection approval 21 May 1982
Premiere
premiere 10 December 1982 /unsuitable for youths/
Production
Copyright Holders
Studio
Distribution
Creative Group
Dramaturgická skupina Miroslava Hladkého, Miroslav Hladký (vedoucí dramaturgické skupiny), 5. dramaturgicko-výrobní skupina, Miloslav Vydra (vedoucí 5. dramaturgicko-výrobní skupiny)
Technical info
Duration typology
feature film
Duration in minutes
97 min
Original length in metres
2 565 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: 21. festival českých a slovenských filmů Ostrava
1983
Ostrava / Czechoslovakia
Vítěz
Festival: 21. festival českých a slovenských filmů Ostrava
1983
Ostrava / Czechoslovakia
Petr Hapka
Vítěz
Festival: 21. festival českých a slovenských filmů Ostrava
1983
Ostrava / Czechoslovakia
Josef Vinklář
