Author and screenwriter Vladimír Körner brought to life numerous interesting projects realised together with director František Vláčil, but he also expanded his filmography through collaboration with Jiří Svoboda. Zánik samoty Berhof (The Downfall of the Secluded Berhof, 1983), inspired by the writer’s eponymous book published in 1973, takes place during the first “free” summer following the end of World War II. However, the woods of the Jeseníky Mountains still harbour groups of German “werewolves” trying to cross into their homeland. One such band arrives at a secluded estate owned by the farmer Habiger (Ladislav Křiváček). A trio of young men under the leadership of the nun Salome (Jana Brejchová), a hard-core Nazi, arrive at the farm and begin terrorising its residents. However, the relationships that develop between the intruders and the oppressed are not all black and white. The main protagonist of the story is Habiger’s pious adolescent daughter, Ulrika (Petronela Vančíková), who is fascinated by Salome despite her own beliefs.
The first post-war summer in the mountains on the border of Czechoslovakia, Poland and Germany is rather unsettled. The mountains are still full of sabotage groups of the so-called werewolves - German soldiers who cannot cope with the defeat of the Fascist Germany and do not hesitate to kill on their way home. A peasant named Habiger lives on a secluded farmstead. His wife just died and he was left alone with his teenage daughter Ulrika. A peddler named Gustl is supposed to bring over a priest but, instead, arrives with a woman, Tylda, who wants to hide from the people's anger because she had contacts with the SS officers. The old Florian, who also lives in a secluded cottage, gives shelter to a young and sick German named Erich. In the morning, constable Laica finds Florián nailed to the cottage door. A young lieutenant and a group of soldiers search for the murderer. Ulrika meets a nun named Salome on the way from the funeral and lets her sleep over in her small room. But the next day, Salome returns with two armed young men. People also bring Erich at night. Laica warns Habiger about the danger and is killed in no time. The young men terrorize the farmstead's inhabitants and even tie Habiger and Tylda up. They release them only when the cow begins to calve. The nun sends Ulrika to the town to get medication and some forged documents. A German pharmacist draws the lieutenant's attention to Ulrika. The officer can sense that something is going on at Berhof, but Ulrika does not betray anything. Habiger catches the two young men in bed with Tilda and kills them with a pitchfork in anger. Ulrika takes the sick Erich away from Berhof. The farmstead is surrounded by the lieutenant and the soldiers. Salome changes into trousers and an army blouse and walks towards the soldiers. Putting her hand in her pocket, she is shot dead by one of them. Salome, however, was not going to produce a weapon - she was just holding a war cross in her hand.
jeptiška Salome
hospodář Alfred Habiger
Ulrika, Habigerova dcera
poručík
werwolf Detlev
werwolf Unkas
werwolf Erich Hert
prostitutka Tylda
četnický strážmistr Lašica
Florián
vozka Gustl
polská číšnice
německý lékárník
četař
polský důstojník
voják
voják
voják
důstojník
řidič
štábní písař
tanečnice na zábavě
tanečník na zábavě
tanečník na zábavě
tanečnice na zábavě
tanečník na zábavě
tanečnice na zábavě
muž šlapající měchy varhan
muzikant
muzikant
muzikant
muž v hospodě
hlas vojáka
Andrzej Reiter, Hana Hanušová
Zora Vondráčková, Marie Brodilová
Vladimír Körner (Zánik samoty Berhof – novela)
Jan Hodný, Karel Kočí, Bohumil Kadlec, Jan Klíma, Zbigniew Pakuła
Petr Čapek, Urszula Orczykowska
Jacek Gwizdała, Hana Jarošová, Zygmunt Wójcik, Evelyna Vrbová
Tomasz Matusiak, Jan Kočí, Małgorzata Kaczmarek, Sabina Olczak, Krzysztof Poddębski
Zbyšek Svoboda
Jarmila Holubová, Jana Šimonová, Jan Svoboda (střih), Roman Květoň, Jaroslav Řeřicha, Jerzy Rogowski, Urszula Kłoda, Ewa Kossowska, Vratislav Novotný, Zdeněk Vávra, Milan Ťoupalík
Muziky, muziky, Cikán, černý cikán, O Tannenbaum, O Tannenbaum, Koupím já si koně vraný, A já sám vždycky sám
František Kmoch (Muziky, muziky), Jiří Červený (Cikán, černý cikán), Adolf Školka (Cikán, černý cikán) (úprava), lidová německá píseň (O Tannenbaum, O Tannenbaum), lidová píseň (Koupím já si koně vraný), lidová píseň (A já sám vždycky sám)
František Kudrna (Muziky, muziky), Tomáš Hertan (Cikán, černý cikán), Adolf Školka (Cikán, černý cikán) (úprava), Ernst Anschütz (O Tannenbaum, O Tannenbaum)
sbor (Muziky, muziky), Ladislav Křiváček (Cikán, černý cikán), Petra Vančíková (O Tannenbaum, O Tannenbaum), sbor (Koupím já si koně vraný), sbor (A já sám vždycky sám)
Zánik samoty Berhof
The Downfall of the Secluded Berhof
Ślady wilczych zębów
film
feature
drama
Czechoslovakia, Poland
1983
1983
1 March 1985
long
98 min
Czech
Festival: 36. filmový festival pracujících – léto ´85
1985
70 měst / Czechoslovakia
Festival: 24. mezinárodní filmový festival Karlovy Vary
1984
Karlovy Vary / Czechoslovakia
Festival: 24. mezinárodní filmový festival Karlovy Vary
1984
Karlovy Vary / Czechoslovakia
Event: 19. mezinárodní setkání filmu a mládeže Cannes
1984
Cannes / France
Festival: 22. festival československých filmů Banská Bystrica
1984
Banská Bystrica / Czechoslovakia
Event: 19. mezinárodní setkání filmu a mládeže Cannes
1984
Cannes / France