On doit s'entraider

Just saw this on BBC4 - extraordinary - it's the kind of achievement American (and British) screenwriters should practice for years to emulate. Robert McKee, see this film!

The writing, directing and acting are all superb, and in the service of a supremely human story beautifully constructed around timeless epic themes of man's inhumanity to man, war, and all the other big stuff. To separate these from the movie itself, though, would be to do it a great disservice.

The mix of laugh-out-loud humour, gripping thriller, and finally a well-earned and unsentimental tear-jerker of a last 15 minutes is the zenith of a movie-watching experience. "Divided We Fall" is very funny from the outset, but it doesn't take long for the filmmakers to skilfully tighten the knot with sudden character twists and brilliant writing early on. Once we're immersed in 1943 Czechoslovakia, we're not only rooting for the lead character Cizek, played immaculately by Bolek Polivka - a winning combination of contemporary earthy Brit character actor Philip Jackson and 20th century comedy genius Alistair Sim - we're feeling like we're there with him.

He and the ensemble cast play every beat of the story just right (there's even one moment midway through where the audience are maybe allowed to get a bit too far ahead of Polivka's character, but it's remedied by the performances). The visual flourishes, especially the effects of switching between film speeds and using a DV tape look, all enhance the narrative without intruding into it, and thus heighten the tension at unexpected moments. The costume and make-up designs bring the human stories to warm life; and set against war-torn 1940s backdrops, the production design could hardly go wrong.

A great treatment of a much depicted time and narrative that manages to make events feel fresh, real, scary, funny, dramatic, ultimately hugely moving...somehow many more people should get a chance, and be urged, to see this film.

I thought this was the original title as well, but even if it's not it's a great film. The acting is just great, these actors are all strangers to me and perhaps that helped, I don't know, but I loved each and every one of them, even the jerks. The script is top notch and the camera and music all conspire to make this one of the best films of the 'empty calorie' summer of 2001. It's a good sign for Czech films, this director is one to watch. I can't wait for his next film. Go and see this movie! ..

In Krszysztof Kieslowski's brilliant film, 'No End', set in post-Solidarity Poland, a lawyer tells a dissident union leader: 'You decided to collaborate the day you decided not to throw yourself under a tank.' Which is of course true, but often forgotten in our easy condemnation of those who picked the wrong side in past wars. To have been a baker in occupied France, say, and to have continued with your work, draws no retrospective judgement; to have been a senior civil servant is to earn today the label of a Nazi. Of course, Nazism was almost uniquely repugnant, and yet could have been stopped had no-one collaborated; but those of us lucky enough not to have lived through the war need also be careful about setting up standards that we ourselves could not have met. 'Divided We Fall' is a Czech drama set in World War Two, whose strength is it's honesty is portraying both the courage of ordinary people, and also the limits of that courage. It's heroes become reluctant enemies of the Germans when they shelter a Jewish fugitive for initially just one night; and are then forced to follow through on their actions. Director Jan Hrebejk is rather too keen on the peculiar trick of shooting film with a reduced refresh rate, rather like an old silent movie, so that his characters' movements appear odd and jerky: I'm not too sure what this is supposed to achieve. The gloomy nature of the central protagonist also leads to a lack of tonal variation in the piece, he is terminally depressed even before he gets into trouble, and this pervasive mood of hopelessness takes some of the zing out of what at times feels a slow-paced movie. But the merit of this work is it's portrayal of real human beings, doing both good and bad things, for mixed motives, at times of intense pressure. 'Divided We Fall' might not be a great film; but it is a true one.

This movie is intelligent and thought provoking as it examines, without judgment, the human capacity for both good and evil in its portrayal of several citizens of a small town in Czechoslovakia during the Nazi occupation. It is rare that a movie be harrowing, funny, sweet, and heart wrenching without being contrived. What distinguishes this movie about wartime loyalties and collaboration with the enemy from well worn cliches is its finely nuanced portrayal of each character. Not every collaborator is deserving of punishment and not every so called resistance fighter is a hero. It is an emotionally rewarding movie and it shows that human behavior cannot be reduced to a Manichean struggle.

1st watched 12/5/2008 -(Dir-Jan Hrebejk): Well executed film about a couple in Czechoslovakia who house a Jewish friend during the Nazi occupation of the country. The storyline is really about how people can stick together despite their differences and this is where it shines. The initial credits start by showing us a strange segment passing thru three years where nothing really happens except the introduction of the Jewish character who is ratted on by a neighbor so that their own family will not be harmed. We then are introduced to the main couple in the story entertaining a Nazi friend. They decide to house the Jewish friend and the conflict begins. The conflict is the real possibility that the Jewish person will be found and the couple will be punished as well as the entire town. The wife is the most stable person while the husband almost takes on some of the nazi's attitudes during the period while they are housing their friend. The movie shows how fragile the entire period was with the fear imposed by the Nazi's and the ability they had in changing the culture to becoming suspect of everyone. The couple want a child but are unable to have one themselves, but then end up telling a nazi that they are unable to house him because the wife is pregnant. The husband then makes the Jewish friend pregnate the wife to cover up for this lie. So, the Jewish character, is in some ways still imprisoned even though he is not in a camp. In the end, the four main characters work together to survive after the Czech's take back over the country and this is how the movie got it's title. The excellent performances and story and the opportunity to visit another time and place are just part of the reason to watch this wonderful movie. Hopefully many others will see this DVD release and this very good movie.