To encounter this opus by František Vláčil, even after the 44 years since it was first screened, is a profound experience, particularly for seasoned audiences who don’t perceive film language merely as a means of communication. In order to create an authentic evocation of the early Middle Ages, the director creatively took advantage of all the cinematic artillery exploited at the time, while also developing, interweaving, and combining these techniques in bold new ways. He was similarly innovative in his approach to the narrative, arranging the story into numerous episodes, each expressively brought to life through the subjective perspective of one of the wide range of characters with their varying dispositions. Vláčil thus forces the viewer to immerse himself in the spirit of a distant age, and to experience its atmosphere with uncommon intensity. He achieved his objective of making a powerful "historical documentary,” creating along with it a multi-layered, poetic parable about the tragedy and sublimity of human destiny.