Pearls of the Deep

Pearls of the Deep
Directed by	Jiří Menzel Jan Němec Evald Schorm Věra Chytilová Jaromil Jireš
Based on	Short stories by Bohumil Hrabal
Music by	Jan Klusák Jiří Šust
Cinematography	Jaroslav Kučera
Edited by	Miloslav Hájek Jiřina Lukešová
Release dates	7 January 1966
Running time	105 minutes
Country	Czechoslovakia
Language	Czech

Pearls of the Deep (Czech: Perličky na dně) is a 1966 Czechoslovak anthology film directed by Jiří Menzel, Jan Němec, Evald Schorm, Věra Chytilová and Jaromil Jireš. The five segments are all based on short stories by Bohumil Hrabal. The film was released in Czechoslovakia on 7 January 1966.^[1]

The film was received as a manifesto for the new generation of Czechoslovak filmmakers, and thus became closely associated with the Czechoslovak New Wave.^[2]

Plot

"The Death of Mr Balthazar" ("Smrt pana Baltazara"), directed by Jiří Menzel

A couple go to a motorcycle race and talk about motorcycle lore.

"Imposters" ("Podvodníci"), directed by Jan Němec

Two old men who are about to die construct false biographies for themselves. One man claims to have been a successful opera singer and the other a successful journalist.

"House of Joy" ("Dům radosti"), directed by Evald Schorm (22min)

Two insurance agents visit an eccentric amateur painter and goat farmer.

"At the World Cafeteria" ("Automat Svět"), directed by Věra Chytilová

A wedding reception takes place at a diner. The guests are able to stay oblivious of the surrounding misery.

"Romance", directed by Jaromil Jireš

A working-class boy becomes infatuated with a Gypsy girl.

Cast

"The Death of Mr Balthazar" Pavla Marsálková as Matka Ferdinand Krůta as Otec František Alois Vachek as Mrzák Emil Iserle as Stryc Miroslav Nohýnek as Chlapec Vlasta Spánková as Dívka Jiří Menzel as Bicyclist "Imposters" Miloš Čtrnáctý as Zpěvák František Havel as Novinář Josef Hejl as Holič Jan Vašák as Zřízenec Jiří Reichl as Boy with fracture "House of Joy" Josefa Pechlatová as Matka Václav Žák as Malíř Ivan Vyskočil as Uředník Antonín Pokorny as Uředník

"At the World Cafeteria" Věra Mrázková as Nevesta Vladimír Boudník as Vytvarník Alžběta Laštovková as Výčepní Václav Chochola as SNB Jan Vala as Cock Aleš Košnar as Mládenec Bohumil Hrabal as Bohumil Hrabal "Romance" Dana Valtová as Gypsy girl Ivan Vyskočil as Gaston Karel Jeřábek as Hlídač František Příhoda as Watcher

References

1. "Perličky na dně". Česko-Slovenská filmová databáze (in Czech). POMO Media Group. Retrieved 2016-01-31.
2. Hames, Peter (2001-02-23). "Reality Czech". The Guardian. Retrieved 2016-01-31.

External links

• Pearls of the Deep at The Criterion Collection