Naděžda Gajerová

During the Nazi occupation of a Czech city civilians are being rounded up on the slightest of pretexts and shot. One day three high school boys who crack jokes about a recently deceased "hero of the Reich" are pulled out of school by the Gestapo.

In late 19th century Czech-speaking Bohemia, oppressed workers at German-owned mines and foundries revolt against their harsh working conditions. Made shortly after World War II as Czechoslovakia was falling to communism, the film resonates in Czech resentment of the German occupation.

Oldrich is the runt of his village, beaten by his father, bullied by the other boys. But he has imagination on his side, and a wiry toughness they can’t defeat. The village is in turmoil, because the Nazi occupiers have just retreated and the Red Army is advancing. Oldrich dodges amid the mayhem and panic, taking his share of blows but always managing to stay one step ahead.

An American spy agency located in West Germany is interested in information concerning Czechoslovak commercial activities in the Middle East. Agent Rudolf Karlik creates a network of associates in Prague...

Six-year-old Anička Čejková has moved with her parents from the village to a new housing estate in Prague. For now, she and her father are alone, but her mother is due to return from the hospital soon with her newborn Ondřej. Anička gets lost during her first walk around the neighborhood, but a nice young woman helps her. She is teacher Řeháková, in whose class 1. And soon Anička will start. The first-graders like the school, and when Anička confides in them that her mother will be back soon, they decide to give her a festive welcome.

As Nazi troops prepare to occupy the already truncated Czechoslovak Republic, a small military garrison made up of communists defies orders to abandon their post.

At the annual festival in Strážnice, long-time rivals - cooperative members from the neighboring municipalities of Dubnice and Bojanova - met. This time, the people of Dubnice are leading both in selling sausages and in the artistic forum. Despite the protests of the accounting cooperative Ambrože, the youth from Bojanova establish a singing and dancing group, led by teacher Bartoš, whom Ambrože's daughter Eva loves. However, they go all the way to Dubnice to practice so that the irritable Ambrož does not know about it. This is the reason for the rift between Eva and Bartoš. They only reconciled after the defeat of the Bojanova group in the regional round of the competition. It turns out that neither Bojanova nor Dubnice alone can build an artistically strong group, but if they unite, they have hope for success in the next year of Strážnice.

It seems almost unbelievable, but it has been 30 years since István Örkény's Cat's Play premiered on the stage of the former Tyl Theatre, now the Stavovský Theatre, with Dana Medřická and Vlasta Fabiánová in the lead roles. It has been performed 403 times and has become a true cult production of the 1970s and early 1980s. The story of two sisters, whose lives are divided by the Iron Curtain, resonated with the audience with its truthfulness. In Dana Medřická's interpretation, the character of Erža Orbánová has also become a symbol of indomitable optimism despite the poverty of life. Not only this production, but also the acting performance of Dana Medřická and Vlasta Fabiánová have become legends during their lifetimes.