L'asso di picche

Anyone who has seen the early films of Milos Forman will know that, contrary to popular belief here in the West, they really did have a sense of humour in Eastern Europe and that "The Loves of a Blonde" and "The Fireman's Ball" are still among his very best films. "Black Peter", which he made in 1964, was his first feature length film and while not quite in the same class as the films that followed it, is still something of a small gem.

Heavily influenced by both the British New Wave and Italian Neo-Realism it's a lovely comedy about a young man starting on his first job as something of a store detective, a job he's woefully not cut out for, as well as a great coming-of-age film, a brilliant satire on bureaucracy and a superb picture of life in the Czech Republic in the 1960's. Peter himself, the boy in question, is beautifully played by 19 year old Ladislav Jakim making his film debut but then Forman gets great performances from all of his largely non-professional cast, (as his Hollywood career showed, he was one of the great actor's directors). This might be a 'small' film in the Forman canon but it's a joy from start to finish.

This movie evokes to perfection a time, a spirit, even a country (Czechoslovakia) that no longer exist. It's perhaps the most Godardian film among those not directed by the then innovative French movie maker Jean-Luc Godard. It is full of abrupt cuts, hand-held shots, dialog obviously improvised, and so forth. But Forman's humorous tone is quite far away from Une Femme est Une Femme, or Bande À Part. His background is the neo-realist heritage of everyday topics, non-professional actors, and social concern. (Godard, let me remind you, went from rightist anarchist to Maoist wannabe sharkopath, from pioneering cinematic language to self- indulgent mimic.) Forman's subsequent comedies - namely Loves of a Blonde and Taking Off, were better structured - but Peter & Pavla, almost half a century later, turned into a cute retrospective cameo.

"Black Peter" marks as acclaimed director Milos Forman ("One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest", "Amadeus") first film after spending some time as a documentarian and what a remarkable, jolly, honest and funny film that he gave us. It's not a mirror to life, it is life, and it's one of those rare times that a motion picture manages to translate the teenage years with a freshness and almost uniqueness to everything that you forget you're watching a movie, it really feels life unfolding. It's positive but not cynical, it's about the torments of youth with some achievements and plenty of disappointments and misunderstandings, and with those series of events we have something that doesn't reek of the excitment and recklessness of youth as commonly depicted on Hollywood movies.

We follow the adventures of Peter (the great Ladislav Jakim), a 17-year-old teen with three constant things to achieve: get a job and keep it; to have some fun out partying while he's not there; and get a girl. He gets all that, rest assured, but it's never exactly what he thought it would be or he's not seeing things properly or acting properly. He's a disaster at his job working as a security checkout at a supermarket, and I loved every moment of innocence displayed by the little guy - he simply can't perform when needed while following clients or potential shoplifters (anxious sequences yet hilariously funny); and as for the girl (Pavla Martinkova) and later on the party they attend it becomes a series of how to behave properly, what to talk about and the typical teenage awkwardness a majority goes through. Basically he wants sex but he doesn't have a certain approach for that. It gets more troublesome with the constant interruptions of two young bricklayers (Vladimír Pucholt and Zdenek Kulhanek), of whom the couple had a brief altercation. That duo is priceless as well and the whole dance party sequence is hysterical.

Through the course of four days, it all revolves about those great conquests where he can say he's a grown up, but also to appease the war at home with his demanding father and countless hard life lessons, or at least look good for his boss. We've seen this before, that's life and Peter walks through those issues with an everlasting sense of what to do. I greatly identified with this character since he's got that vibe of never knowing what he wants but knowing exactly what he doesn't want, and sometimes those things push each other. Example: he wants to be with the girl, wants to know her better but probably doesn't want her as a girlfriend and all the demands that come with such, or at the very least he wants to make use of his hormones.

This is one of the finest representatives of the Czech New Wave cinema (from the period Forman also has "Loves of a Blonde", "The Firemen's Ball"), with new filmmaking techniques, themes treated and a wide-eyed criticism on social/political issues, specially against the Communist regime they were under at the time. This one sounds less critical on such theme, but it's there deepened in its core. What we have mostly on the foreground is the wildly amusing story of a teen growing up, the experiences he acquires on the period, with the new people who comes his way (usually abrupt and bumpy encounters) and just trying things, see if it works or not. This is the perfect anti-thesis of many coming of age movies where everything is bright, happy and magical and the sense of responsibility is almost non existent. "Black Peter" is about disappointment, frustrations and things not being as cracked up to be yet it's fun because of all that since that period is exactly like that, for the brief time that exists in the transition from childhood to adulthood; and plus it's one of the last opportunities where one can fail a little and not make things as the end of the world. There's a sense of charm and innocence so real and appealing here that's almost impossible not to like this film. 10/10

P. S.: but why on Earth did the bricklayer dropped his shorts before the fight? I'm still clueless on that.

This brought to mind CLOSELY WATCHED TRAINS, another early Czech New Wave film about a teenage apprentice who's none too excited about his work. Both are coming-of-age comedies with some moments of awkward teen romance. This film (Forman's first feature) actually predates Menzel's, and has more of a freeform, anecdotal structure. Although not explicitly a commentary on Communism, Petr's distaste for spying on customers clearly has some political implications. The film has a gentle, naturalistic pace with scenes that have a nice attention to detail. Ladislav Jakim struck me as a fine young actor, and I liked how the rival boy gradually developed into a more sympathetic character (particularly during the dance scene, which was my favorite part of the movie). Jan Vostrcil, the wonderful lead in Firemen's Ball, perhaps lays it on a little thick as the overbearing father, but it's a somewhat humorous performance. Although the comedy is quite mellow and subdued, there are a few laugh out loud moments. Unfortunately, the Facets DVD sports an ugly transfer, and woefully incomplete subtitles. Entire swaths of dialogue went by without translation.