Archive of films Forgotten Light / Zapomenuté světlo
Czech Republic
1996, 108 min
Section:
Tribute to Boleslav Polívka
Year: 2022
Czech-American screenwriter Milena Jelinek shifted Jakub Deml’s novel of the same name to a period fifty years later. Although she didn’t experience the Czechoslovak Normalisation era herself, Jelinek’s vision of the all-pervasive deterioration of the time is accurate down to the last detail. Here Michálek proved himself an accomplished director with a sense of subtle testimony, enhanced by suggestive performances from Boleslav Polívka and the rest of the cast and by a cinematographic eloquence beyond words.
Synopsis
Father Holý, a young, easy-going and wholly good-natured priest, stands before a handful of his faithful flock in the derelict village church. He asks sarcastically: “Does God exist? Is it up to some committee to decide whether he does or not?” His question appears to encapsulate the stagnation of the Normalisation era, when everything, including the fate of church heritage, lay in the hands of party officials indifferent to past and present spiritual and material values. Holý knows that any battle against them or their minions cannot be won, and his helplessness and despair worsen with the gradual decline of a married woman with children whom he loves deeply. He feels lonely and worthless, yet he also has good people around him who, through their willingness and capable assistance, inspire both Holý and the viewers.
Zdena Škapová
About the director

Vladimír Michálek (1956, Mladá Boleslav, CSSR). Selected filmography: America (1994), Forgotten Light (1996), Sekal Has to Die (1998), Autumn Spring (2001), The Hunter and the Woodpecker (2004, TV film), Sandpit (2004, TV film), Of Parents and Children (2007), The Messenger (2012), The Rescuers (2003, TV series, 6 episodes), Mammon (2015, TV series for HBO Europe, 6 episodes).
Contacts
Studio Fáma 92 s.r.o.
Jungmanova 5, 110 00, Praha 1
Czech Republic
E-mail: [email protected]
About the film
Color, 35 mm
Section: | Tribute to Boleslav Polívka |
---|---|
Director: | Vladimír Michálek |
Screenplay: | Milena Jelinek |
Dir. of Photography: | Martin Duba |
Music: | Michal Dvořák, Michal Dvořák |
Sound: | Radim Hladík ml. |
Editor: | Ivana Kačírková |
Producer: | Jana Tomsová, Ivana Kačírková |
Production: | Studio Fáma 92 |
Coproduction: | Česká televize |
Cast: | Boleslav Polívka, Veronika Žilková, Simona Peková, Petr Kavan, Jiří Pecha, Antonín Kinský, Jiří Lábus |
Sales: | Studio Fáma 92 s.r.o. |
Guests

Vladimír Michálek
Film Director

Bolek Polívka
Actor

Veronika Žilková
Actor

Jana Tomsová
Producer

Ivana Kačírková
Film Editor