Hořící keř

Prague's Wenceslas Square on 16 January
1969, five months after the violent suppression
of the Prague Spring by Warsaw Pact
troops. A young man douses himself with
a liquid and sets fire to himself with a
match. A letter is found in his briefcase
elaborating upon the reasons for his
actions. Student Jan Palach committed
suicide by self-immolation in protest
against the invasion of August 1968.
Whilst he lies in mortal agony in hospital,
news of his deed spreads like wildfire
across the country. The students resolve
to organise a strike, the police fear
copycats and all the while Jan's mother
and brother watch over his hospital bed.
He died several days later and the funeral
evolved into a final major protest; an
almost endless, silent sea of people flowing
through Prague's streets. When, several
weeks later, a communist deputy ridicules
Jan's deed, his mother resolves to bring
the case to court.
Agnieszka Holland's three-part drama,
which though including fictional elements
strives for historical accuracy, is one of
the few Czech productions dedicated to
this period which resists the trend towards
nostalgic romanticisation, instead offering
up an unadorned portrayal of the brutality
of a system as well as the moral dilemmas
with which its citizens were daily confronted.
At once a vivid history lesson and
unforgettable cinematic experience.