Czechoslovak New Wave in 10 films
In the 1960s young directors in Prague mixed comedy, sadness and sharp political jokes. Soviet tanks ended the movement in 1968 and many films were banned for twenty years.
- 1Diamonds of the Night 1964Jan Němec · IMDb 7.3Two boys escape from a train taking them to a camp and run through a forest. Němec's fierce, nearly wordless film.
Next: Black Peter
After a harrowing escape, Forman's first feature shifts to comedy, following a shy teenager through his first job. - 2Black Peter 1964Miloš Forman · IMDb 7.0A shy teenage boy starts his first job as a shop detective. Forman's first feature, funny and full of small truths.
Next: Loves of a Blonde
Forman stays close to young people, now in a romance that is funny and quietly sad. - 3Loves of a Blonde 1965Miloš Forman · IMDb 7.4A factory girl meets a pianist and he is not who she dreamed. Forman's comedy that is also quietly sad.
Next: The Shop on Main Street
The tone turns graver, as a small-town story set in wartime puts a carpenter's conscience to the test. - 4The Shop on Main Street 1965Ján Kadár · IMDb 8.2A carpenter is made the "Aryan manager" of a shop owned by an old Jewish widow. It won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
Next: Closely Watched Trains
Another wartime story told gently, this time through a young railway clerk, and another Oscar winner. - 5Closely Watched Trains 1966Jiří Menzel · IMDb 7.6A young railway clerk in the war has to deal with love and with sabotage. Menzel's gentle film also won the Oscar.
Next: Daisies
Gentleness is left behind: two young women decide to be bad, in the movement's wildest and most colourful provocation. - 6Daisies 1966Věra Chytilová · IMDb 7.2Two young women decide that the world is bad and so they will be bad too. Chytilová's wild, colourful film was banned by the regime.
Next: Marketa Lazarová
From a modern, playful world we plunge into the Middle Ages, in a black-and-white epic often voted the best Czech film. - 7Marketa Lazarová 1967František Vláčil · IMDb 7.8Two robber families and a captive girl in the Middle Ages. Vláčil's stunning black and white epic, often voted the best Czech film.
Next: The Fireman's Ball
Back to the present for political satire, as a small-town ball descends into chaos in a comedy aimed at the party. - 8The Fireman's Ball 1967Miloš FormanA small-town fireman's ball turns into chaos as the prizes are stolen. Forman's comedy was read as a joke about the party and was banned.
Next: The Cremator
The laughter turns black, as a funeral worker who loves his job is slowly drawn toward the Nazi cause. - 9The Cremator 1969Juraj Herz · IMDb 8.0A funeral worker who loves his job is slowly pulled into the Nazi cause. Herz's black horror comedy is dark and unforgettable.
Next: Valerie and Her Week of Wonders
The movement's last notes are a dream: a fairy tale for adults, full of flowers and fear. - 10Valerie and Her Week of Wonders 1970Jaromil Jireš · IMDb 7.0A thirteen-year-old girl wanders through a dream of vampires and priests. Jireš's film is a fairy tale for adults, full of flowers and fear.
