Václav

Colour, 35 mm
Czech Republic, 2007, 97 min
Section: Czech Films 2007-2008

Synopsis

The autistic Václav is regarded as a harmless enough soul but, as the years pass, he causes increasing problems, and his neighbours in the village and his colleagues in the agricultural cooperative are running out of patience. Locked in his own playful, poetic world, he lives with his aging mum who fondly accepts her son’s madcap ideas and excesses. But the majority think that someone who shoots at passers-by with an air rifle and tries to drive a tractor for fun belongs in an institution. Even the man’s respectable younger brother František refuses to take him under his wing anymore. Then one of Václav’s reckless exploits lands him in prison. Who will find the courage to sign the petition for his release? This tragicomedy is inspired by a real story from the 1990s which received considerable exposure when the protagonist was granted clemency by former President Václav Havel. Ivan Trojan and Jan Budař won Czech Lions for their performances.

About the director

Jiří Vejdělek (b. 1972, Šluknov) graduated in film direction from FAMU after studying at the Teaching College in Ústí nad Labem. He attracted attention with his student films (Sweets / Sladkosti, 1999, selected for the short film programme at the Cannes IFF). He signalled his interest in comedic material straight away with his feature film debut Holiday Makers (Účastníci zájezdu, 2006), an adaptation of Michal Viewegh’s bestselling novel that became the biggest Czech box office hit of 2006 and won Eva Holubová a Best Actress award at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York in 2006 and a Special Jury Prize for the entire cast. Last year, in addition to Václav, Vejdělek directed the poetic comedy Roming, also written by Marek Epstein. He also works in television (the series The Office / Redakce).