Marketa Lazarová

The legendary adaptation of Vladislav Vančura’s 1931 avant-garde novel. In thirteenth-century Bohemia, Christianity is spread by the sword rather than the cross, and the feuding clans wage guerrilla warfare against each other. The titular Marketa (Magda Vášáryová) wishes to enter a nunnery, but is kidnapped by robbers. In order to convey the historical truth of the period, the actors and film crew worked for two years in medieval-like conditions, including during the harsh winter. The narrative is elliptical, non-linear, and conveyed by the imagery: ascetic shots of nature, phantasmagoric visions, and layered symbols, while the black and white of the wide film stock gives the film an almost mystical feel. Marketa Lazarová is considered František Vláči’s best film and the culmination of his philosophical reflections on the nature of man – greedy, cruel, and blinded by a thirst for power.

Bogna Goślińska

František Vláčil (1924–1999) was a Czech director, painter and graphic artist. He studied art history and started his career in film by working on animated and educational short subjects in the 1950s. He made his feature debut The White Dove in 1960, following it with two historical films: The Devil’s Trap (1962) and his masterpiece Marketa Lazarová (1967), which in a 1998 poll was selected the greatest Czech film of all time. Vláčil’s background in the fine arts shows in the visually impressive style of his films.

4K restoration from 2011.