VRATNÉ LAHVE

Josef is a teacher, 65 years of age and slightly embittered, who finds his insolent pupils increasingly difficult to cope with. After squeezing a wet sponge over a cheeky teenager’s head for the umpteenth, he decides not to apologize but to resign instead. Deciding that domestic bliss with his wife Eliška is not the answer either, Josef looks around for a new challenge. He still feels fit and full of life, enjoys the occasional flirtation, and so he finds a job. Working at the drop-off point for empty bottles in a supermarket, his ready wit and his genuine interest in colleagues and customers soon make him a popular and indispensable member of staff.

Not for the first time, Svěrák jr. & Svěrák sr. Join forces to enchant viewers with a gently melancholic comedy bristling with witty dialogue. The original screenplay touches upon themes like the loneliness of old age, the family, human co-existence, and its writer embodies Josef with the same casually bullheaded charm that won the earlier KOLYA international acclaim. The director handles his father’s script deftly, and aided by a cast like Jiří Macháček und Tatiana Vilhelmová creates a work with cross-generation appeal. The film drew Czech audiences of over a million, and also seems set for international success.