La bruja traviesa

What a fun this movie! It's a continuous flow of gags from beginning to end, a mine of ideas and fantasy. The "theme" - a beginner witch is trying her first spells – has nothing to do with the real witchcraft, because it's a mere narrative handle to build funny, hilarious, ironic situations. A very successful handle indeed, because the plot runs riot with very entertaining scenes. What makes this film so funny is its not taking itself seriously and its joking without malice on persons and themes. The school teachers turned into rabbits and locked into a hutch, the pupils who suddenly get donkey ears and their she-teacher walrus teeth, the boy who "looses" his head and tries to replace it with a clay head of Napoleon.... these are just some of the situations of this movie. I kept on laughing almost the whole film through. Special effects are simple, but not at all childish and unsuccessful. After all, with good ideas, modern technologies and heaps of money are not necessary for making a good movie. The Czechs were great in the fairy tale genre, and had at least one precious quality which the other Eastern Europe countries did not have: the absence of political propaganda. The Russians or the Germans of GDR couldn't refrain from putting it in almost every movie. And the political propaganda spoils the magic and the lightness of a fairy tale. In this one you will find none. Somebody says that it is an ancestor of the Harry Potter saga. Nothing of the kind! The child wizard takes himself tremendously seriously, and pushes the poor children of the real world to emulation. This is just an innocently funny movie, where spells are almost laughed at, because they are only a way to.... laugh.

Nov 22

I am English and only got into Czech/Russian films a few years ago, I really like their fairy tale type fantasy movies, and this certainly involves fantasy elements.

Its a comedy about Witches, and one in particular called Saxana.

Anyway she ends up in the human world and gets involved with some school kids, some good and some bad.

Its a fun family comedy and the effects are more than adequate.

I cant really say much more and IMDB require more sentences from me, i cant name any of the actors but again they are all fine.

If you are looking to get into Russian/Czech films of this nature then check out the likes of "World of crooked mirrors" or "Barbara the fair with the silken hair".

7.5 to 8 magic spells out of 10.

Seeing 'Three Wishes for Cinderella' and 'The Girl with the Golden Star' made me compelled to watch more Czech films, having watched a good amount of East German and Russian fantasies/fairy tale films recently. Whether comedy, drama or ones based on fairy/folk tales. There are plenty more to see, some of which have already been noted down as things to watch, but what has been seen already has made me really eager to see more.

'The Girl on the Broomstick' is again another example of why it has been so far a pleasure familiarising myself with films from Czechleslovakia. Regardless of whether 'The Girl on the Broomstick' had any flaws or not (didn't notice any obvious ones and was too entranced and entertained to care that much), it is one of those films where it is very difficult to be hard on it. Is it recommended? Wholeheartedly, especially if you want a distraction (a much needed one in my case) or want to see something different.

It enchants visually, it's beautifully photographed and designed while the effects are appealingly quirky and have the right amount of magic. The music is an ideal fit for the film's tone and the type of film it is (fantasy-adventure), and never had any problem with how it was placed or how loud or not it was.

Also loved the quirky wit of the script, appealing to both children and adults, with some very funny sight gags. It never becomes too childish and nothing should go over children's heads. Nothing is heavy handed and it doesn't try to make any political statement or anything which if inserted would have felt completely misplaced. The story is always lively and has plenty of content to sustain the length, which didn't feel too long or too short, filled to the brim too with charm and childhood innocence. My only not so major problem, and it is my only issue with the film too, is a few outsmartings being a little convenient.

Saxana is an immensely engaging protagonist who is easy to get behind and the numerous colourful supporting characters are great fun. The acting never felt too theatrical and Petra Cernocka gives a central performance that is wholly believable and charming throughout.

Concluding, another Czech delight. 9/10

This Girl in a Broomstick, from 1972, belongs to the group of farces that constituted the successful comedies of the Soviet period, mostly of the late sixties and early seventies of the last century. In this case, there are, however, two important particularities: it is a Czechoslovak production and it is clearly aimed at a younger audience.

Don't expect to find here the insightful irony of a Jiri Menzel, the poetic drama of a Ján Kadár or even the audacious experimentalism of a Jaromil Jires, this is a simple film, what would pass today for a modest television film for teenagers.

But it still has some fun moments and, above all, it is an irresistible exercise in nostalgia, for those who grew up watching films like this.

Great art during the intro credits. It reminds me a bit of Tim Burton's style. The actress playing Saxana is very pretty, a natural beauty. Her outfit rocks. I like the way things look in the movie like with the sets and props. Idk there's something playful and charming about it. Same with the practical effects, simple but well done. They get creative with the ideas in this movie. The editing and special effects are surprisingly pretty smooth. The makeup can look silly and lackluster at times with some of the creatures, but it could just be a limited budget. The story/premise is flat out ridiculous, bizarre and bonkers - it doesn't really care about making sense. It's entertaining, amusing and funny - and that's what counts.

This movie kind of fulfills that fantasy of being visited by an attractive witch. It's got some pretty good comedic moments and beats to it that I wasn't expecting. I like how even though she's an attractive witch, no one treats her as such. They don't put her up on a pedestal, glorify her, sexualize her or treat her differently. She's treated as an equal like everyone else. It's almost weird in a funny way how no one makes a slight mention of her being pretty. That's crazy how they got a full grown cow into a small apartment room. I wish they treated the rabbits a little better in the movie. I lost it when they turned into popes. Overall, it was an amusing little Czech movie. I initially wanted to watch it because the main witch girl was really cute, but then was pleasantly surprised by how ridiculous, charming and funny it was. Recommended. Raw score: 7.3/10.