Ta naše písnička česká II.

Later life film? or Czech films that have kind of been forgotten II.

Directed by Vit Olmer, Czechoslovakia 1990, 100 min.

Despite the title, Olmer's film has nothing in common with the song revue Ta naše písnička česká, which was made in 1967 and directed by Zdeněk Podskalský. The title song by Karel Hašler is heard only at the end of the tragicomedy, which describes twenty years in the life of a violinist forced to play only what others want or what makes him money instead of quality music. Jan Rošetský (Jan Hartl) ends up in a boiler room after 1968 and is occasionally allowed to return to the violin. His lifelong nemesis, however, is the manipulative music agency director Karel (Bronislav Poloczek). The easing of conditions for Jan apparently comes too late - for Olmert's film, however, he was a lifesaver. The filmmakers delayed making it until after November 1989, when they were able to film it entirely to their liking.
The film was based on material in which the anonymous author summarised his own experience of the peculiar and fraudulent practices of the Pragokoncert agency. The collected material was provided to the screenwriter Radek John in the autumn of 1988 by the head of the creative group, Josef Císař.

Introduction by film historian Jan Lukeš, in original version.