Two on Horseback, One on a Donkey

Country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1986

Production year

1985—1986

Premiere

1 February 1987

Runtime

127 min

Director

Jiří Sequens

Genre

historical, musical

Typology

featuretheatrical distributionlong

Original title

Dva na koni, jeden na oslu

Czech title

Dva na koni, jeden na oslu

English title

Two on Horseback, One on a Donkey

Summary

Based on an eponymous play by Oldřich Daňek, the film version was brought to the screen in 1986 as the final film from experienced director Jiří Sequens. This musical comedy set in the 14th century, during the reign of King Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia, has a trio of mercenaries as its main characters. Hřbet, Zajíc and Svatý are returning to Bohemia from Aquitania in order to join up with local forces there. During their trip through the Czech countryside, our heroes frequently get mixed up with the wrong side, and consequently repeatedly find themselves on the receiving end of a good thrashing. Yet, in all these battles and scuffles, they retain the moral high ground. The trio are played by actors Jaromír Hanzlík, Svatopluk Skopal and Radoslav Brzobohatý. The roles of the villainous noblemen, with whom the trio become entangled, are played by Josef Vinklář and Jan Čenský. The historical backdrop is enriched via the songs of Vítězslav Hádl, with lyrics by Vladimír Sís, reflecting the contemporary Czech fad for electronic music.

Synopsis

It is the 14th century. Three mercenaries wander through the country. Two of them, nicknamed Chine and Rabbit, travel on horseback, the poorest of them, called Saint, on a donkey called Moses. Chine finds a skeleton of a hand and a bracelet with precious stones in it in a brook. In a roadhouse, the deaf-and-dumb fool Dog's Foot reports to the publican and his pretty wife Perchta by movements of his agile body that guests are coming. The orphaned girl Bezka also works in the boozer. Her father was murdered years ago by the elusive Band of the Cross which marks its victims – rich merchants – with a cross on their foreheads. While Rabbit cannot resist Perchta's seduction, Saint loses all their property and the donkey in a dice game. But Chine bets the bracelet and they get everything back. The wealthy feudal lord Mátoha of Prám hires the threesome to bring him back his daughter Běta, who was kidnapped by the young Chval of Drslavice. The mercenaries get to the kidnapper by a trick, capture him and transport him to the fortress of Prám. But Mátoha is somewhat unwilling to pay them for their service. Běta, who wants to marry Chval, comes in soon, wearing an earring in her ear which matches the bracelet. She starts to quarrel with her father and, outraged, labels him a chief of highwaymen. But Chval teams up with Mátoha, and Dog's Foot lures the two mercenaries out to the rocks to the bodies of several massacred Arabian merchants. People call for the village magistrate who proclaims the soldiers to be robbers and arrests them. The royal district administrator sentences them to be hanged. The people behind the Band of the Cross, however, are in fact Chval, Mátoha and the magistrate. The girl Bezka bribes Dog's Foot by making love to him and gets to the cell. She has grasped who actually killed her father and helps the convicts escape. Instead of the plundering predatory noblemen their faithful innocent servants are hung with sacks on their heads. The disappointed fool Dog's Foot sets Mátoha's fortress Prám on fire out of revenge. The mercenaries, who now all leave on horseback, take Bezka with them. Now, it is the girl who is on the donkey.

Film online

Voyo →

Photos

Based on

Oldřich Daněk (Dva na koni, jeden na oslu – divadelní hra)

Screenplay

Jiří Sequens

Shooting Script

Jiří Sequens

Script Editor

Věra Kalábová

Director of Photography

Viktor Růžička

Second Unit Photography

Oldřich Kovář

Camera Operator

Ivan Šimůnek, Vojtěch Kuthan, Jiří Krejčík

Production Designer

Jiří Hlupý

Set Designer

Miloslav Dvořák

Costume Designer

Jan Kropáček

Costumes

Věnceslava Vrtišková, Eva Vlková, Květa Gregorová, Eva Voborská

Make-Up Artist

Jiří Šimon, Jana Dolejší, Bohumil Sobotka, Vlasta Brijarová, Jaroslav Šámal

Film Editor

Petr Sitár

Sound Designer

Vladimír Skall

Special Effects

Jiří Šimunek, Boris Masník, Miroslav Šnábl

Special Effects

Václav Kuba (pyrotechnik)

Stunts

Arnošt Böhm, Pavel Cajzl, Vladimír Čumpelík, Roman Eppert, Josef Farkaš, Ivan Furák, Antonín Hausknecht, Josef Hrubý, František Jákl, Petr Jákl, Miroslav Jíra, Jiří Kalenský, Jaroslav Klenot, Jiří Klenot, Ladislav Kocourek, Zbyněk Krákora, Antonín Kramerius, Pavel Krátký, Jiří Kraus, Jaroslav Kubeš (2), Ladislav Lahoda, Zdeněk Matěcha, Jaroslav Palkoska, Jindřich Sejk, Petr Sekanina, Oldřich Semerák, Roman Skramuský, Miroslav Smolík, Pavel Svojanovský, František Stupka, Květoslav Štora, Karel Vávrovec, Jaroslav Vlk

Production Manager

Karel Kochman, Petr Prejda

Unit Production Manager

Jarmila Tomišková, Eliška Sekavová, Hana Jarošová, Adriena Jirková

Unit Production Manager

Jana Jeřábková, Aleš Týbl

Consultant

František Michálek, Jaroslav Tomsa, Petr Hanuš

Cooperation

Zuzana Koblížková (klapka), Helena Lehovcová, Magda Hájková, Viktor Čahoj (práce se zvířaty), Petr Hanuš (práce se zvířaty – výcvik koní), Václav Hlávka, Růžena Hejsková, Martin Malý, V. Svojtka, R. Silverio, Jiří Zahrádka

Music

Music Composed by

Vítězslav Hádl

Music Performed by

Studiový orchestr (Music Conducted by Vítězslav Hádl),

Choreographer

Jan Hartmann, Richard Hes

Danced by

Čs.státní soubor písní a tanců, Vysokoškolský umělecký soubor UK, Balet Laterny magiky, Společnský taneční klub DKDP Praha

Songs

Nám toulavým

Songwriter Vítězslav Hádl
Writer of Lyrics Vladimír Sís
Singer Radoslav BrzobohatýJaromír HanzlíkSvatopluk SkopalSylva Sequensová

Zbožných mužů povinnosti

Songwriter Vítězslav Hádl
Writer of Lyrics Vladimír Sís
Singer Sbor Pavla Kühna

Znám jen chvíli

Songwriter Vítězslav Hádl
Writer of Lyrics Vladimír Sís
Singer Jaromír HanzlíkDagmar Veškrnová-Havlová

Čas motýlích her /Drslavské intermezzo/

Songwriter Vítězslav Hádl
Writer of Lyrics Vladimír Sís
Singer Eva Jeníčková [dab]Lída Nopováskupina Bezinky

Kančí hody /Prámské intermezzo/

Songwriter Vítězslav Hádl
Writer of Lyrics Vladimír Sís
Singer Sbor Pavla Kühna

Oslí requiem

Songwriter Vítězslav Hádl
Writer of Lyrics Vladimír Sís
Singer Svatopluk SkopalSbor Pavla Kühna

Bezčina láska

Songwriter Vítězslav Hádl
Writer of Lyrics Vladimír Sís
Singer Sylva Sequensová

Nám toulavým

Songwriter Vítězslav Hádl
Writer of Lyrics Vladimír Sís
Singer skupina Golem

Production info

Original Title

Dva na koni, jeden na oslu

Czech Title

Dva na koni, jeden na oslu

English Title

Two on Horseback, One on a Donkey

Typology

featuretheatrical distribution

Genre

historical, musical

Origin country

Czechoslovakia

Copyright

1986

Production Year

1985—1986

Production specifications

literary Screenplay approved 5 January 1983
start of filming 4 May 1985
technical Screenplay approved 24 June 1985
end of filming 20 May 1986
projection approval 3 July 1986

Premiere

premiere 1 February 1987

Production

Filmové studio Barrandov

Copyright Holders

Státní fond kinematografie

Distribution

Ústřední půjčovna filmů

Creative Group

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

Sales

Národní filmový archiv, Obchodní oddělení

Technical info

Two on Horseback, One on a Donkey

Country

Copyright

Production year

Premiere

Runtime

Director

Category

Genre

Typology

Original title

Czech title

English title

Summary

Synopsis

Film online

Photos

Cast

Václav Höfler

Ernest Valko

Dušan Vobecký

Martin Pacek

Antonín Urbánek

Jaromír Růžička

Robert Plesný

Jana Aitnerová

Aleš Baloun

Dana Boušíová

Lenka Bulíčková

Vlastimil Carda

Iva Cigániková

Dana Čižinská

Michal Dluhý

Jiří Drgáč

Rostislav Filgas

Danka Floriánová

Tomáš Forejt

Marcela Fränzlová

Hana Fridrichovská

Luděk Frydrych

Dana Gregorová

Romana Hájková

Iva Hechtbergerová

Alice Hlasová

Michaela Hosnedlová

Vjačeslav Ivanov

Dana Jandová

Kamil Jedlička

Josef Kalík

Jaroslav Kantor

Ivana Klemptová

Renata Křížová

Miroslava Marešová

Zuzana Mejzlíková

Ivana Michková

Dagmar Morcinková

Luboš Oravec

Jiří Pixa

František Skalák

Zuzana Sýkorová

Vladislav Šebesta

Petr Šebestián

Helena Šuranská

Jaroslav Šuranský

Petr Tesař

Michal Tesař

Rudolf Tichý

Peter Tomašovič

Karla Vitnerová

Ludmila Vrbická

Jan Weisner

Vladimír Maňhal

Lenka Mihoková

Milana Mihoková

Miroslav Grác

Michaela Štěpánková

Vladimír Weigner

Petr Svoboda (2)

Jaroslav Ticháček

Crew and creators