
Acting
Petr Čepek
Born 1940-09-16 · Prague, Protectorate Bohemia and Moravia [now Czech Republic]
Petr Čepek was a Czech actor associated with The Drama Club in Prague. His final film was Faust, directed by Czech surrealist Jan Švankmajer. Cepek attended the Academy of Performing Arts (DAMU) along with many notable Czech actors of the time, before appearing in Ostrava’s first theater, DPB until 1965. After joining with fellow colleagues in Prague’s Činoherní Klub, where he contributed to the formation of numerous famous theatre productions such as Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment and Gogo’s Revizor (The Government Inspector). Čepek turned to politics in the late 1980s, participating in political rallies and negotiations before returning to the Academy of Performing Arts (DAMU) to teach until his death in 1994. Čepek was honored posthumously for his double role in the Švankmajers film Faust.
Acting credits
7.4A very free adaptation of Marlowe's "Doctor Faustus", Goethe's "Faust" and various other treatments of the old legend of the man who sold his soul to the devil. A nondescript man is lured by a strange map into a sinister puppet theatre, where he finds himself immersed in an indescribably weird version of the play, blending live actors, clay animation and giant puppets.
Faust
1994
5.9This futuristic science fiction comedy features an atomic bomb blast that causes women to grow beards and lose the ability to have children. A summit meeting is held at the United Nations, with the proposed solution of building a time machine. The decision is made to travel back in time and murder Einstein, with the hopeful result being that without the noted mathematician's research there will be no atomic bombs.
I Killed Einstein, Gentlemen
1970
7.3Jealous of her vapidly "good" sister's popularity, poisonous Viktoria doses pretty Klara's tea with a slow-acting fatal substance. As the latter grows hysterically weak, the former finds success increasingly compromised by guilt, blackmail, and the pesky need to kill others lest she be exposed.
Morgiana
1972
4.3A short story film depicting the three different faces of crime. In the short story "The Weekend", Karas kills a woman he raped some time ago in order to silence her. However, he accidentally kills another woman. In "Hostages", a drug addict, Chaban, terrorizes the hospital's operating team, but the disciplined doctors handle the difficult situation. In "The Pickpocket", the thief Benda wants to return to his trade immediately after his release, but his attempt ends tragically.
The Motive for Murder
1975
7.3This film brings us back to show us the life of the famous ancient sage Aesop, who helped people with his wisdom in their struggle for freedom and happiness.
Aesop
1970
No synopsis available yet.
Akce Býčí oko
1976
5.9The film is a metaphor for the Cold War. It depicts two neighbouring nations: peace loving Fortuna and the not so peaceful land of the Steel City.
The Secret of Steel City
1979
7.8It is a story of three veterans released from the army. During one night spent camping in the country they one by one wake up and meet three elvish brothers. Each of the veterans is given a magic item - one gets magic harp that provides him with servants by wish, other one endless pouch of gold and the last one owns magic hat that can create all the staff excluding money and people.
The Three Veterans
1984
7.2Mr Jiš managed to give his first script at Barrandov. Already in the preparatory phase, he discovers with horror that the filmmakers have completely bypassed his intention - instead of a probe into the life of a contemporary village, they are preparing a spectacular musical show, which they are convinced will be a hit with the audience. The very first shots speak volumes. An elegiac arrives in the village of Lipovec and is greeted with singing and dancing by all the local officials and ordinary citizens, as this coveted expert is to help them increase their hectare yields with his progressive methods. The filming continues in a similar vein, and the newly minted screenwriter can't help but wonder...
The Hit
1981
6.6An episodic film about the inhabitants of Kersko, their hardships and their joys, most prominently hunting. A lyrical and humorous adaptation of writings by Bohumil Hrabal.
The Snowdrop Festival
1984
7.4The movie's main storyline follows the life of Otík, a young man, in a tight-knit village community. The sweet-tempered Otík works as an assistant truck driver with Mr. Pávek, his older colleague and practical-minded neighbor. Pávek's family takes care of Otík, whose parents are dead. However, the two coworkers become at odds over Otík's inability to perform even the simplest tasks. Pávek demands that Otík be transferred to assist another driver, who happens to be a choleric and suspicious man named Turek (Turk in Czech). Rather than work with Turek, Otík decides to accept an offer of employment in Prague, but finds he does not fit in to the city life. After discovering that the transfer of Otík to Prague was a trick by a crooked politician to get a deal on Otík's large inherited house, Pávek agrees to give Otík a second chance and retrieves him from the city to resume their work together.
My Sweet Little Village
1985
7.4The time is 1945-46. 10 year old Eda and his friend Tonda live in a small village outside Prague. In school, their class is so wild and indisciplined that their teacher quits and is replaced by the militant Igor Hnidzo. He is very strict – but also very fair. His weakness though, is his interest in young women.
The Elementary School
1991
No synopsis available yet.
Polka viva
1984
No synopsis available yet.
Kamenný orchestr
1982
No synopsis available yet.
Revue za šest korun
1985
8.2Czechoslovak comedy film directed by Ladislav Smoljak, about the fictional national hero Jára Cimrman (universal genius, inventor, sportsman, criminalist, poet, writer and philosopher).
Jára Cimrman Lying, Sleeping
1983
5.8Sonya is the heiress to the riches of a Czech noble family—the Hajns. Petr, a social climber marries her, ignoring some shady goings-on—in particular, an insane uncle who prowls the mansion believing himself invisible, a peccadillo the family indulges. The uncle’s stalking every corner of the house, popping out of cupboards and out from behind curtains slowly takes its toll on the young bride.
The Damned House of Hajn
1989
5.4A doctor is shocked when his beloved colleague Mima signs a contract with foreign car manufacturer Ferat, in order to work for them as a rally-driver. A scientist convinces him that human blood is being used as fuel for Mima's ever winning car, but does that really work?
Ferat Vampire
1982
On their tenth wedding anniversary, painter František and his wife Jarmila return to their isolated home. While František is content with a quiet, unambitious existence, Jarmila perceives their orderly life as stagnant water rather than true living. What is intended as a private celebration becomes a pivotal moment where an unforeseen event forces František to reveal his true character through his actions.
Portrait
1982
7.0Cast out by his father, young Ondrej joins the Order of the Teutonic Knights, where he is raised by strict monk Armin. After years of hardship, Ondrej escapes from the Order when he is wrongly punished, and sets out for his former home. Arriving to discover his father to be dead, Ondrej now not only assumes control of his father's properties, but seeks to marry his former stepmother.
The Valley of the Bees
1968
7.0Francin, manager of a small-town brewery, has a charming wife whose abundant blonde locks are an adornment to the town. Maryska looks ethereal but loves meat and beer, while Francin is an ascetic. The strict members of the brewery board of directors come to audit the accounts, but are diverted from concentrating on Francin's detailed reports by Maryska, who has organized a pig-killing feast and is ably assisting the butcher. When she invites the old curmudgeons on the board to enjoy the fresh pork, they are too happy to agree. Francin doesn't know whether he is going to get a permanent contract. To make things worse his brother Pepin - eccentric, noisy and garrulous - turns up on an indefinite visit.
Cutting It Short
1981
8.0This film is about life of a family, which lived in Prague since since 1968 to 1980. Father of the family comes from Ukraine and so every year someone from Ukraine to visit this family and to buy something more better than is in Ukraine. As the times go by, the friens of family live in Austria. And now for change the family visit "a better life" in west Europe and they found out how it is to be something second-rate.
Thanks for Every New Morning
1994
6.1The invincible agent Cyril Juan Borguette alias W4C has been assigned a mission to go to a hotel in Prague, get hold of a saltcellar with a plan for the military exploitation of Venus hidden in it, and hand it over to the beautiful agent Alice. He will have to compete for the saltcellar with other agents working for the world's various greater and smaller powers. The head of the Prague counter-intelligence unit gets news of agent W4C's mission. Deficient in personnel, he nominates accountant Foustka as agent 13B. Mr Foustka takes his dog Pajda with him and the two head for the airport. Pajda helps him track down agent W4C in a classy hotel that becomes the battleground for the interests and plans of the secret agents from different countries, each trying to get hold of the precious saltcellar.
The End of Agent W4C
1967
5.5The distressing fate of the Czech great Jan Amos Komenský, forced to leave his homeland after the White Mountain disaster. It depicts his encounters with various European personalities of the 17th century - the Queen of Sweden, artists and scientists. It emphasises the hero's nobility, but also his inner resilience, which allowed him to overcome many personal and professional tragedies. The parable of The Labyrinth of the World and the Paradise of the Heart becomes part of the story. However, Comenius's concept is sculpturally lifeless and, in particular, the religious dimension is "erased" from it. The simplistic biography therefore does not avoid schoolboyish dryness.
Putování Jana Amose
1983