Love Is Smell of Resin

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1984

Production year

1984

Premiere

1 September 1985

Runtime

89 min

Category

film

Genre

psychological

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Láska s vůní pryskyřice

Czech title

Láska s vůní pryskyřice

English title

Love Is Smell of Resin

Working title

Letokruhy

Summary

Vlado Müller himself valued his humanly mature performance in this psychological drama by director Jiří Hanibal, who based the film on his book Když pláče les (When the Forest Weeps). In 1984, the actor was only 48 years-old, but he nevertheless managed to grasp the part of a roughly 60-year-old lumberjack with a heart of gold and the significant name of Franta Hrubý (Frank Coarse). The maverick forestry worker arrogates the right to always be right. He thus falls into conflict with his beloved teenage granddaughter Jana (Mahulena Bočanová), eager-to-marry girlfriend (Věra Galatíková) and his estranged daughter (Libuše Geprtová). Noteworthy is that the then 24-year-old Marek Vašut, who took the role of Jana’s friend, also played his part in the successful acting. The narrative atmosphere is based on North Bohemian forest exteriors, in which the drama of the implacable Franta takes on a new authenticity.

Synopsis

The old forest worker Franta Hrubý takes care of his grandchild Jana in his cottage near the wood. She is already full age, but still her grandfather slaps her, when she comes back from a date with Slávek at the dawning. Due to a weak heart Franta is exhausted by daily riding on bike to work. But he would never admit it in front of other foresters. To the team belong following people - a coachman Karel, the Slovakian lumberman Pišta Kolár, Mareček, producing all the time decorative objects carved of roots, the young Míla and Slávek, to whom the forester Samek gave over Franta's motor saw. Franta does not approve to be shifted to easier job. A proof of his health shall be a bet that he can blow away a candle from five meters. He can manage that only with a secret help of Pišta. Honza Váchal comes back from prison after he had been sentenced for stabbing a lover of his wife. He is only accepted to the team of Franta, although their relations are not ideal. Hrubý does not like Slávek and when he catches him with a rifle in the wood, he convinces with of poaching. As a loudmouth Franta bets that he will cuts down a huge tree only with an axe and a hand saw. Halina Vašicová, a mature but still a good looking Franta's girl-friend would like to marry. Franta turns her down because he allegedly loves only the wood. He is visited by Vlasta, his daughter and Jana's mother. She never took much care of her illegitimate daughter Jana who wants to go to town now, to stay with her and work in a textile factory. But Vlasta is getting married and she does not care about her daughter. In a quarrel the grandfather tells Jana about it. Halina wants to make Franta jealous; she is pretending a relationship with Honza. Jana leaves the cottage and even Slávek does not know where she is. Franta sets out to the town, and he finds his grandchild in a boarding house. In order to attract her back he says that Slávek stopped drinking because of her, and that he is sick. Jana comes back, but she recognizes immediately it was a lie and she goes back to the town. The lonely Franta proposes to Halina. He does not agree with a huge wedding in church, but he accepts that the priest can marry them in the wood. The ceremony takes place properly, but the ceremony master gets drunk at the feast and he admits that he is only a verger. The raging Franta scatters the wedding guests. The unhappy Halina leaves him. While extinguishing a wood fire Franta reconciles with Slávek, but in no time he gets a heavy pneumonia. Slávek let Jana know about it and she takes care of her dying grandfather till the last moment. The sad event makes her close with Slávek again.

Cast

Vlado Müller

lesní dělník Franta Hrubý

Věra Galatíková

Anna Vašicová zvaná Halina

Mahulena Bočanová

Jana, Frantova vnučka

Marek Vašut

dřevorubec Slávek, Janin přítel

Ladislav Frej

dřevorubec Honza Váchal

Ilja Racek

kočí Karel Zajíc

Václav Sloup

dřevorubec Rudolf Mareček

Peter Staník

dřevorubec Pišta Kolár

Jan Skopeček

důchodce Kroutil

Karel Koloušek

důchodce Hampl

Libuše Geprtová

Vlasta, Janina matka, Frantova dcera

Arnošt Proschek

dřevorubec Míla Bartoš

Karel Urbánek

kostelník, vydávající se za faráře

Karel Hovorka

lesní dělník

Petr Skarke

Voice by Petr Pospíchal
Tonda Vlášek, Vlastin přítel

Jaroslav Heyduk

hostinský

Petr Kostka

lesník Samek

B. Uličná

svačinářka

Josef Bříško

hudebník

J. Brtek

hudebník

Z. Cais

hudebník

V. Duda

hudebník

J. Hrůza

hudebník

T. Jirák

hudebník

Vladivoj Jankovský

hudebník

K. Kukla

hudebník

Ota Kmínek

hudebník

J. Mareš

hudebník

J. Nový

hudebník

Alois Šnajdr

hudebník

O. Sloupa

hudebník

J. Sova

hudebník

Crew and creators

Second Unit Director

Věra Ticháčková

Assistant Director

Vít Horálek

Screenstory

Jiří Hanibal

Based on

Jiří Hanibal (Když pláče les – novela)

Screenplay

Jiří Hanibal

Shooting Script

Jiří Hanibal

Dramaturg

Karel Cop

Director of Photography

Josef Vaniš

Second Unit Photography

Václav Helliman

Camera Operator

Bohumil Vodička

Production Designer

Jaroslav Krška

Assistent Production Designer

František Vokřál

Set Designer

Karel Kracík, Miloš Sršeň, Milan Šefrna

Costume Designer

Dimitrij Kadrnožka

Film Editor

Josef Valušiak

Assistant Film Editor

Jan Svoboda, Jana Šimonová

Sound Designer

Jiří Moudrý

Special Effects

Jiří Milfait

Production Manager

Petr Čapek

Unit Production Manager

Evelyna Vrbová, Hana Jarošová

Unit Production Manager

Jan Kočí

Cooperation

Jarmila Holubová (klapka), Jaromír Komárek (fotograf)

Music

Music Composed by

Angelo Michajlov

Selected Music

Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (Svatební pochod), Antonio Vivaldi (Koncert pro mandolinu a orchestr C dur /Allegro/)

Music Performed by

FISYO (Music Conducted by Mario Klemens)

Production info

Original Title

Láska s vůní pryskyřice

Czech Title

Láska s vůní pryskyřice

English Title

Love Is Smell of Resin

Working Title

Letokruhy

Category

film

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

psychological

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1984

Production Year

1984

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 22 July 1983
start of filming 9 January 1984
technical Screenplay approved 17 February 1984
end of filming 22 October 1984
projection approval 31 October 1984
withdrawal from distribution 30 June 1990

Premiere

premiere 1 September 1985 /suitable for youths/

Creative Group

2. dramaturgicko-výrobní skupina, Josef Císař (vedoucí 2. dramaturgicko-výrobní skupiny)

Technical info

Duration typology

feature film

Duration in minutes

89 min

Original length in metres

2 517 meters

Distribution carrier

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