Kolya
Encyclopedia
Kolya is a 1996
Czech film
drama
about a man whose life is reshaped in an unexpected way. The film was directed by Jan Svěrák
and stars his father Zdeněk Svěrák
who also wrote the script from a story by Pavel Taussig.
struggling to eke out a living by playing funerals at the Prague
crematorium. He has lost his previous job at the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
due to having been half-accidentally blacklisted as "politically unreliable" by the authorities. A friend offers him a chance to earn a great deal of money through a sham marriage
to a Russia
n woman to enable her to stay in Czechoslovakia. However, the woman uses her Czechoslovak citizenship to emigrate and join her boyfriend in West Germany
.
Due to a concurrence of circumstances she has to leave behind her Russian-speaking five-year-old son, Kolya, for the disgruntled Czech musician to look after. At first Louka and Kolya have communication difficulties, as they don't speak each other's languages and the many false friend
words that exist in Czech
and Russian
add to the confusion. Gradually, though, a bond forms between Louka and Kolya. The child suffers from suspected meningitis
and has to be placed on a course of carefully monitored antibiotic
s. Louka is threatened with imprisonment for his suspect marriage and the child may be placed in a Russian children's home. The Velvet Revolution
intervenes though, and Kolya is reunited with his mother. Louka and Kolya say their goodbyes.
1996 in film
Major releases this year included Scream, Independence Day, Fargo, Trainspotting, The English Patient, Twister, Mars Attacks!, Jerry Maguire and a version of Evita starring Madonna.-Events:...
Czech film
Cinema of the Czech Republic
The Czech Republic was a seedbed for many acclaimed film directors.Three Czech/Czechoslovak movies that won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film were The Shop on Main Street by Ján Kadár and Elmar Klos in 1965, Closely Watched Trains by Jiří Menzel in 1967 and...
drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
about a man whose life is reshaped in an unexpected way. The film was directed by Jan Svěrák
Jan Sverák
Jan Svěrák is a Czech film director. He is the son of screenwriter and actor Zdeněk Svěrák. He studied documentary filmmaking at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague...
and stars his father Zdeněk Svěrák
Zdenek Sverák
Zdeněk Svěrák is a Czech actor, humorist and scriptwriter. He is one of the most popular Czech cultural personalities. In 1989, he was a member of the jury at the 39th Berlin International Film Festival....
who also wrote the script from a story by Pavel Taussig.
Synopsis
The film begins in 1988 while the Soviet bloc is beginning to disintegrate. František Louka, a middle-aged Czech man dedicated to bachelorhood and the pursuit of women, is a concert cellistCello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
struggling to eke out a living by playing funerals at the Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
crematorium. He has lost his previous job at the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra is a professional, philharmonic symphony orchestra, over 61 years old, predominantly it is composed of Czech and Slovak classical and jazz musicians...
due to having been half-accidentally blacklisted as "politically unreliable" by the authorities. A friend offers him a chance to earn a great deal of money through a sham marriage
Sham marriage
A sham marriage or fake marriage is a marriage of convenience entered into with the intent of deceiving public officials or society about its purpose. Arranging or entering into such a marriage to deceive public officials is itself a separate violation of the law of some countries...
to a Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n woman to enable her to stay in Czechoslovakia. However, the woman uses her Czechoslovak citizenship to emigrate and join her boyfriend in West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
.
Due to a concurrence of circumstances she has to leave behind her Russian-speaking five-year-old son, Kolya, for the disgruntled Czech musician to look after. At first Louka and Kolya have communication difficulties, as they don't speak each other's languages and the many false friend
False friend
False friends are pairs of words or phrases in two languages or dialects that look or sound similar, but differ in meaning....
words that exist in Czech
Czech language
Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
and Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
add to the confusion. Gradually, though, a bond forms between Louka and Kolya. The child suffers from suspected meningitis
Meningitis
Meningitis is inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, known collectively as the meninges. The inflammation may be caused by infection with viruses, bacteria, or other microorganisms, and less commonly by certain drugs...
and has to be placed on a course of carefully monitored antibiotic
Antibiotic
An antibacterial is a compound or substance that kills or slows down the growth of bacteria.The term is often used synonymously with the term antibiotic; today, however, with increased knowledge of the causative agents of various infectious diseases, antibiotic has come to denote a broader range of...
s. Louka is threatened with imprisonment for his suspect marriage and the child may be placed in a Russian children's home. The Velvet Revolution
Velvet Revolution
The Velvet Revolution or Gentle Revolution was a non-violent revolution in Czechoslovakia that took place from November 17 – December 29, 1989...
intervenes though, and Kolya is reunited with his mother. Louka and Kolya say their goodbyes.
Principal cast
| Role | Actor |
|---|---|
| Kolya | Andrei Chalimon |
| Louka | Zdeněk Svěrák Zdenek Sverák Zdeněk Svěrák is a Czech actor, humorist and scriptwriter. He is one of the most popular Czech cultural personalities. In 1989, he was a member of the jury at the 39th Berlin International Film Festival.... |
| Klára | Libuše Šafránková Libuše Šafránková Libuše Šafránková is a Czech actress. Her husband is actor Josef Abrhám. In 2008 she received the prize Hvězda mého srdce , awarded by the Czech Television.- Filmography :... |
| Mr. Brož | Ondřej Vetchý Ondrej Vetchý Ondřej Vetchý is a Czech actor. He was born in Jihlava, Czechoslovakia.He is currently employed at The Drama Club in Prague.- Notable performances :* 2005 – Katurian in The Pillowman, DC... |
| Louka's mother | Stella Zázvorková Stella Zázvorková Stella Zázvorková was a Czech actress from Prague.Zázvorková, an alumnus of Prague's theatre school of E.F. Burian, appeared in several hundred films and series. She was married to the actor Miloš Kopecký... |
Awards
- Academy Award for Best Foreign Language FilmAcademy Award for Best Foreign Language FilmThe Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
- Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language FilmGolden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language FilmThe Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the awards presented at the Golden Globes, an American film awards ceremony.Until 1986, it was known as the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Film, meaning that any non-American film could be honoured...
- Czech LionCzech LionThe Czech Lion awards are annual awards that recognize accomplishments in filmmaking and television. It is the highest award of achievement in film awarded in the Czech Republic...
- Best Film
- Best Director (Jan Svěrák)
- Best Actress (Libuše Šafránková)
- Best Supporting Actor (Andrei Chalimon)
- Best Screenplay (Zdeněk Svěrák)
- Best Editing (Alois Fišárek)
- Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix