Czech cinema on Blu-ray

[DukeOfPrunes]

Originally Posted by KrugerIndustrial

What films are worth buying for? Top 5? I don't think I've ever had the pleasure of seeing a Czech film before.

First, I'd say "Marketa Lazarova" (Criterion) and Svankmajer's "Alice" (BFI). You can't go wrong here, it's a perfect introduction to Czech cinema. The first one is a new wave classic, while the other is Svankmajer's best effort. Icing on the cake: both are top-notch releases with excellent PQ/AQ and features.
If you enjoy cut-out and stop-motion animation, creative filmmaking, then I'd suggest you indulge in the Karel Zeman collection and "Kuky se vraci". The 3-film anthology presents the very best of the director output, with Harryhausen-like SFX and unique combination of different techniques. The BD is not perfect, but it's still a major improvement over the previous DVD editions. More recent is the family picture Kuky (2007), which stands as a sort of Czech take on "Toy Story". The HD presentation is excellent.

[Admira]

http://firstrunfeatures.com/alicebluray.html

[dumb_dutchman]

Originally Posted by DukeOfPrunes

...More recent is the family picture Kuky (2007), which stands as a sort of Czech take on "Toy Story". The HD presentation is excellent.

I wanted to pick this up for (me and) my kids, but with Czech audio and English subtitles, I would be forced to narrate it to my 6 and 2 year olds.

[DukeOfPrunes]

No English subtitles for this one, it's a shame, restoration looks wonderful.



Test (czech) with wonderful screen captures

[toddly6666]

Originally Posted by KrugerIndustrial

What films are worth buying for? Top 5? I don't think I've ever had the pleasure of seeing a Czech film before.

Hoří, má panenko
Kooky

[editor*by*night88]

there is the criterion eclipse series #32 pearls of the Czech new wave!

[editor*by*night88]

Originally Posted by editor*by*night88

there is the criterion eclipse series #32 pearls of the Czech new wave!

dvd only

[nitin]

does anyone know if there's any plans to release/restor Diamonds of the Night? Watched this off the Second Run dvd yesterday and it cries out for a blu.

[Dan8700]

Originally Posted by nitin

does anyone know if there's any plans to release/restor Diamonds of the Night? Watched this off the Second Run dvd yesterday and it cries out for a blu.

It would be much appreciated, the DVDs are very poor.

[nitin]

I would give the Second Run disc a 6-7/10 by dvd standards but given the cinematography in this film, a restoration would do it a lot of justice.

I need my ants on faces in 1080p please

[Zenzucht]

There's a long term-plan for restoration about 200 http://www.bijaky.cz/o-filmech important Czech movies, but there's a lack of funding. You can donate here: http://www.bijaky.cz/chci-pomoci

[DukeOfPrunes]

It doesn't look like they have made an estimation of the cost for the restoration of those classic films. I would gladly support a Kickstarter campaign (with English-friendly Blu-Ray release) like the one that was done for the Borowzcyk box set from Arrow UK; this website is not a proper way to call for crowdfunding. (Czech only)

[Zenzucht]

I understand your point about the site being not very foreign-user friendly. I can make bank transfer from my e-banking application, I assumed that people from other countries could too, sorry.

I didn't write "crowdfunding", but it seems to me more donation oriented.

Closely Watched Trains is the last digitalized movie, with CZK 165 593,- in donations. Round it up to 200 000,-, which makes $ 10 000 for one movie.

Closely Watched Trains are also part of the "Project 100" (each year, a bunch of important movies gets theatrical rerelease), so that's additional revenue for the restoration.

Update:

I read a few articles about the other restoration attempts and found more information.

Hoří, má panenko (The Firemen's Ball) cost CZK 800 000,- ($ 40 000)
Všichni dobří rodáci (All My Compatriots) cost CZK 1 200 000,- ($ 60 000)

Restoration proposal written in 2010 says its about CZK 2 540 000,- ($ 127 000) for one movie.

[DukeOfPrunes]

Thanks for all the info

[Sifox211]

This is probably a long shot, but... back in the 80s BBC2 ran a series of Czech films, many of which I would like to revisit. Unfortunately I can't remember the names of most of them (Cutting it short was one).

Does anyone know of a list of these films? I remember one featured a strikingly beautiful young woman, it was fairly light in tone and set in a village. Not much to go on I'm afraid!

[Zandery]

Recently I saw 'I Served the King of England', 'Příběh kmotra' and 'Protektor' which were all great films (especially Protektor which isn't on Blu ) and I'm looking for information on which films would be good to look into properly if I were to start a Czech film collection.

Unfortunately I don't understand Czech so I'd need to start with English friendly titles at first

[BarnDoor]

Can anyone confirm if the Příběh kmotra Blu-ray has English subs? Some sites say yes, others no.

[Erasmus Craven]

I'll be visiting Prague soon - can anybody recommend shops carrying a selection of czech films? Karel Zeman Museum is on top of my list.
Also, I couldn't find any info wether Limonádový Joe has English subtitles. Does anybody know?

[DukeOfPrunes]

Originally Posted by Erasmus Craven

I'll be visiting Prague soon - can anybody recommend shops carrying a selection of czech films? Karel Zeman Museum is on top of my list.
Also, I couldn't find any info wether Limonádový Joe has English subtitles. Does anybody know?

I'm 99% sure it does. It was high on my wishlist and the jacket is English-friendly. However, because of shipping costs, 30 Euro for a single Blu-ray was a steep price - even for this incredible film.

Another thing, it is on the list of films that will be restored at some point (with 5,700 submissions), see here http://www.bijaky.cz/chci-pomoci

[Erasmus Craven]

Originally Posted by DukeOfPrunes

I'm 99% sure it does. It was high on my wishlist and the jacket is English-friendly. However, because of shipping costs, 30 Euro for a single Blu-ray was a steep price - even for this incredible film.

Another thing, it is on the list of films that will be restored at some point (with 5,700 submissions), see here http://www.bijaky.cz/chci-pomoci

Thanks a lot! Will try and hunt it down in a local brick & mortar shop.