Bolek Polívka

Bathory is based on the legends surrounding the life and deeds of Countess Elizabeth Bathory known as the greatest murderess in the history of mankind. Contrary to popular belief, Elizabeth Bathory was a modern Renaissance woman who ultimately fell victim to men’s aspirations for power and wealth.

Charming bon vivant Rudolf is convinced that infidelity is the basis for a happy marriage, since, after all, a woman does not want to be bored with her partner.

In the beginning of the 19th century, Johannes Elias Alder is born in a small village in the Austrian mountains. While growing up he is considered strange by the other villagers and discovers his love of music, especially rebuilding and playing the organ at the village church. After experiencing an "acoustic wonder", his eye color changes and he can hear even the most subtle sounds.

Two families, Sebkovi and Krausovi, are celebrating Christmas, but not everyone is in a good mood. The teenage kids think that their fathers are totally stupid, and the fathers are sure that their children are nothing more than rebels, hating anything they say.

A computer programmer and his son are going out of the city for vacation.

Bohus is indolent and spends his days drinking brandy. One day he finds he has inherited a brickworks, several shops and a five-star hotel. Bohus sets out to tour his new empire, insulting everyone on the way.

Operation Danube was the cover name for the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact armies in August 1968. The fleet of Polish tanks which arrive to liberate their neighbor, ostensibly threatened by a counter-revolution, includes the old tank nicknamed Ladybird, which is the last to leave the barracks.

Accumulating money through usury and self-denial is Harpagon's passion and ostentatiously displayed purpose in life. He loves money more than his good name, honor, and dignity. His wealth is more important to him than his own children. He plans to marry his daughter Eliza off without a dowry to an aging rich man, his son Cleante to a wealthy widow – and he himself has chosen the beautiful young Mariana as his bride, regardless of the fact that his son is in love with her. And this is only the beginning of the hypocrisy, deceit, and manipulation that develops in his family and among his servants under the influence of Harpagon's miserliness...

A parody of Frankensteinian stories. It is a story of a little boy, an orphan who arrives at the Castle of Count Frankenstein - a world inhabited by mysterious and sometimes a bit ridiculous scary creatures. Although each one of them is different, they all share one thing: they feel lonely and they are desperate for a little love and affection.

The story of a man who sees his past lives from before he was born after being declared dead for the second time.

Documentary feature about Czech director Jiří Menzel, featuring Menzel himself as well as Miloš Forman, Emir Kusturica, István Szabó and others.

In 1943, a childless couple, the Čížeks, decide to hide a Jewish refugee, David Wiener, the son of Čížek's former employer, in the secret pantry of their apartment. Čížek is aware of the danger into which he has brought his household and his neighbours, but he takes helping his fellow man in need for granted. But at the same time, as a largely unheroic hero, he is dying of fear. His personal situation is greatly complicated by the approaching end of the war, when he faces danger from both the Germans and his "honest" fellow Czechs...

Dedicated home care nurse Vlasta attends her whimsical patients in Czech wine country and lives for her husband Lada and her daughter, but one day things change and Vlasta is forced to reach outside of her comfort zone. Drama and gentle humor intertwine as Vlasta realizes, for the first time in her life, that she might need some care, too.

Artist Bedřich Mára (Bolek Polivka) is unable to find much secure work due to his public antagonism toward the ruling Communist Party. He has a wife and two children. Life begins to change when art historian Alois Fábera (Jiři Pecha) begins working on a piece about Bedřich, leading to a job offer from a Party official. Things are looking up, until the wrong people hear portions of the historian's writing.

Philosophical movie, staged at the least philosophical environment imaginable: A closed scenery of a nudist spot, where some hired Czech stuff is making a plain erotic movie for a rich Russian producer. Nothing in this movie is what it seems to be at the first superficial glance.

With his father's memory waning, a struggling forester must confront the troubling reality about his livelihood and his family's future.

Josef is looking forward to finally fulfilling his old dream of becoming a street clown after retirement. With his charm, he charms even the vigorous Maruška, the owner of the mobile cafe. It's like the two of you have been looking for each other all your life. But isn't it a little late for fateful love? In addition, his daughter Anička and five-year-old Honzík are currently moving into the villa with Josef. She thinks she's done with men for good, but meeting her old love, Pavel, hits her in the heart. A new girl, Evička, joins Honzík in kindergarten. Honzík experiences the feelings associated with love for the first time, he does not fully understand them, so he gathers advice from his mother, grandfather Josef or sympathetic uncle Karel. He also meets love in kindergarten when he falls in love with Honzík's teacher, Eliška. And to add to the rapprochement, Karl's basset Váleček gets along very well with Elišča's basset Šalina.

Prince Louis Ottomar Charles XII, born Noble, is very close to his loving mother, Queen Ludmilla. However, Prince Louis is already a bit too old, he is 39 years old. He's afraid of almost everything, doesn't want to get married, and spends most of his life hanging around the sumptuous castle and adjacent fields. The wise King Radomil therefore prepares an unexpected gift for him - the prince wakes up one morning in the forest in ordinary clothes and, accompanied by the rough knight Hudroval, he is to go out into the world to learn what life is all about and perhaps finally grow up. On his great journey of adventure, he will encounter things he has only read about in books. He will meet a powerful wizard, evil witches, a ghost, and the Lady Death herself... and maybe even find the love of his life. What will Mummy say about all this? And will Father King be happy?

A story that takes place during Advent, we'll meet again with your favorite pair angel Petronel and devil Urias. Their eternal wrangling causes the rare apple from the tree of the knowledge to roll on earth. And that God is really angry. Petronel with Urias find themselves in a small Czech town on the eve of the feast of St. Nicholas. And after a series of human and "divine" tests our heroes eventually find that the path to knowledge leads primarily through self discovery through the strength of friendship, love and forgiveness skills.

Three brothers leave their home to see the world. During their journey, young men as by miracle enter into famous fairy tales (Little Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, Twelve Months) and face traps, unexpected moments and even love in a story full of humor and songs.

Gump's new journey begins exactly where the previous one ended. Together with his beloved Béďa Kozí Bobek, the main animal hero goes through a story that was written for them long ago by the stars. And while Gump's first story was sadder, in its loose sequel entitled Gump – We Are a Pair, viewers can look forward to lots of funny animal scenes. Alongside the main character, a new character will appear, Jenny the dog, who will play Gump's sister Kytička.

The aging Bohus buries his wife Vlastička and after seven years of abstinence starts drinking again.

A story told through the eyes of a stray dog called Gump . On a journey to find his way home to his owner, Gump encounters many challenges, meets new people, and makes a few canine friends along the way. A story about the devotion of a dog, who without hesitation will give his own life for the life of its beloved owner.

The time is 1945-46. 10 year old Eda and his friend Tonda live in a small village outside Prague. In school, their class is so wild and indisciplined that their teacher quits and is replaced by the militant Igor Hnidzo. He is very strict – but also very fair. His weakness though, is his interest in young women.

Jura, a reluctant university student already smitten with someone else, is swept off by his father’s eccentric friend Stano to fulfill an age-old promise and meet the mysterious bride from a Slovak village. What follows is a rollicking road trip of comic mishaps and heartfelt moments that ultimately teaches them all about friendship, adventure, and finding one’s own path.

In this movie, TV sets are full of life. If a person is in TV (e.g. because it was filmed on the street) it has a double that's right in the TV set. This double needs energy from the true character to survive. Each time, the real human watches TV, his Double will pull life energy from him. So there's a mysterious Death-serial. Many persons die in front of their TV set and nobody knows why. Olda, the main character, is one of the persons, that get more and more weak. He is near death, till Fisarek, the natural healer appears. He teaches Olda how he can resist this magic force and how he can fight it.

What was supposed to be a joyful celebration over the dissolution of Czechoslovakia turns chaotic when the Varchal family discovers that their father betrayed both country and family by working for the secret police. The family members turn against each other.

Vera has lived a wonderful life with Jindrich, and she is fully determined to fulfill his last wish - running a marathon. The emancipated and spirited mother of three daughters doesn't think that doing so will be a problem. She and her daughters will split up the route into four parts, and they'll overcome the over 42-kilometer-long challenge as a family relay team. Of course, the fact that neither of them has ever ran even a meter poses no problem.

To recharge after a divorce, a woman returns to her home village, which faces a bizarre problem. The cemetery has run out of room.

Martina is 18, loves dancing and goes by a nick name Shakira. Also, today she is leaving an orphanage...

Hana is a psychologist and a thoroughly independent woman. Her unemployed husband, jealous of his wife, finds a younger girlfriend, but their teenage son Honzik is frustrated; everyone ignores him. Hana's patient Eva, an attractive middle-aged woman, is having problems with her 25-year-old son; she is in love with her son's friend and her son is offended by her behavior. To complete the circle, he falls in love with Hana and Honzik is utterly disgusted by their affair. Another of Hana's patients is Dub, a millionaire who can have pretty much anything, or anyone, he wants. He wants Hana. But he can't have her.

Seven seemingly unconnected fairy tales - glued together only by folklore, mood, color and light - make up this Czech collection of visual poetry. The original piece of literature, written by Karel Jaromír Erben in 1853, contained twelve tales.

Two neighboring clans and two different approaches to life. What happens when the strained relationship of two domineering fathers interferes with the love of their own children?

After the romantic comedies Love Made to Order, Superwoman, and Casting for Love, director Eva Toulová comes with a story in which the main role is not love, but power and money. The initial impetus for the creation of Mole's world was the real-life case of Josef Roušal, the owner of a Prague amusement park. For years, he has been rejecting the verdicts of state authorities that he operates his business without the necessary permits and infrastructure.

An unemployed farmer convinces a geologist friend to quit his university job to seek fortune illegally mining moldavite.

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A dramaturg is present during the writing of the screenplay, but does not write the film. A dramaturg is present on set, but does not direct the film. A dramaturg sits in on the editing process, but does not edit the film. A dramaturg is also involved in many other activities throughout a film’s production, yet performs none of them directly. In this sense, the dramaturg is invisible. The same could be said of the life of the distinguished Czechoslovak dramaturg Jan Gogola, who influenced countless stories throughout his career—including this documentary itself. His portrait is, in fact, being dramaturgically shaped in real time as the film unfolds.

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The grandchildren from Prague come to visit their colorful Wallachian grandfather for the holidays. Their busy parents send them with the good intention of changing their virtual world of the internet, cell phones, and tablets. In the Wallachian village, everything works a little differently. It's not that there's no signal, but the Wallachians simply live a little differently, in their own way. What's more, if you find a forgotten treasure in your grandfather's attic that catches the interest of the rest of the village, you'll suddenly have a ticket to a mysterious excursion through the history of old Wallachia from spring to winter.

This Hrebejk’s comedy is set in Prague, four years after the democratic “Velvet revolution” of 1989. This was an era of sudden freedom, transition and confusion. Most people got carried away, quickly abandoning the old values and uncritically accepting the new. Some people just took a break…

In the small Moravian town of Zvěstov, all the men live for historical battles. They represent the French army, led by their mayor Touchyn (Bolek Polívka), who has had a monopoly on the role of Napoleon for years. This time, they are preparing for a big event—the unveiling of a Napoleonic fountain in the neighboring town of Podolí, attended by television crews and journalists. However, the mayor of Podolí has bad news for Touchyn – this time he has hired a real foreign actor to play Napoleon, who looks more like him. Touchyn is offended and decides to ignore the ceremony. He convinces the people of Zvěstov to do the same, but they regret that they have rehearsed for nothing...

Smoke was the Czech Rolling Stones. However, under unclear circumstances, they broke up in 1972, and each of the four former musicians came to terms with their fate as retired rockers in their own way. Each of them now has their own life and their own story. And their motives for reviving the band Smoke are also different—money, a desire for lost fame, a desire to help a friend, or to really let loose one more time. Their worlds collide and they begin to enjoy music, friendship, and life on and off stage. Not only the band members, but everyone around them is in for a lot of fun and often very surprising and comical situations. And finally, one big mystery is solved - why the band broke up in the first place.

In ancient times, our land was ruled by pagan gods and goddesses. But what happens when they start getting involved in people's lives and vice versa? Will Morena, the goddess of winter, win, or will she be defeated by the goddesses of spring, summer and autumn?

Pepe and Prengel, returning from war, meet Ester and both fall in love with the girl and live together in a deserted house. Fanatic communist, Zelmira, wants to turn their world upside-down.

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A smiling holiday story about an old car named Cleopatra and its four-member, all-male crew...

A poetic documentary about different sides of nature and city life.

The film portrays the final days of the most famous Czech authoress, Božena Němcová, who in the mid-19th century dared to live a life free of social constraints.

The story begins in 1984 in Prague, Czechoslovakia, few years before the end of Communist era. The band Pražský výběr (Prague's selection) has just received the news thier 5-year ban has expired and they are alowed to perform once again. This half fantasy half document about the band would draw the atmosphere of middle european late Communist era and the eufory of it's end.

The film version of the theatre musical production by the "Divadlo na provazku" in Brno tells the tale of legendary bandit Nikola Šuhaj from Koločava.

A tragicomedy full of slapstick and vignettes, and even an unexpected shootout. A family of villagers moves up in the world - to the county seat. Dad works as a butcher at a meatpacking plant, mom is a checker at a supermarket. The daughter is at odds with her homeroom teacher, while the son - a vegetarian, anarchist, and avid pothead - is apprenticing as a butcher to please his father. The kid's in hot water with both his forewoman and the police. But dad isn't much of an example, letting himself be tempted by the charms of a lovely young butcher. However much mom tries - visiting the beauty parlor, her psychologist, or even the confessional - her husband shows his interest by moving out. Mom plots revenge. And somehow an imp gets mixed up in it all

Based on real event, Bolero is an excellent story of progressive recovery of a crime. The story surprises all the time, shows new connections, new possibilities, exposes new ideas and facts. It's possible to understand the film on more levels. It describes the position and all the feelings of victim's family, the police work as well as the impact of the crime on it's malefactors. It also touches the topic of moral decay of the descendants of rich, high-posted families. In addition to this, the power of the storyline is accentuated by the quality of the artistic treatment of the whole piece.

A little girl who, like Alice in Wonderland, wanders through the landscape of her childhood as if through an enchanted labyrinth, observing and recording the world.

Over the course of a year, in a small town scarred and beaten down by industrialization, Tonda and Monika, friends since childhood, come to experience what life might be like if they could be with one another – which they seemingly can't. Or can they?

Funny banter about love, sex, social status, and other ideals, while a new railway employee is trained and sent on his first run as driver.

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The story takes place in the small town of Podlesie, which was once invaded by the Turks. The good fairies were - in good faith - asked for help, but it consisted in hurting others. This has not brought happiness to the town, and it needs to be put right... Perhaps the young blacksmith's nephew Tonko will succeed.

Unexpectedly widowed costume designer Eva discovers a child's drawing that sends her and her daughter on a road trip to uncover a family secret.

A film about the lives of drug addicts. A story of love and falling into the abyss that has no bottom. At the same time, the story of a father who rescues his daughter from the arms of "sweet death".

In 1992, Prague is the capital of a small kingdom. The prince is supposed to choose his bride to be at a royal ball. But to everybody's surprise, he chooses an ugly cleaning-woman. She is shy and silent, but after the marriage she turns into a wild and rumbustious woman with an obstinate and stubborn mind. They both try to kill each other, but the queen is thrown into the dungeons.

Milan's relationship with Dr. Eliška is developing promisingly, and when Milan finally decides to propose to her, it seems that nothing stands in the way of the wedding. Well, apart from one small "trifle" - Milan is still married to Slovakian woman Janka, Kryštof's mother, with whom he somehow forgot to divorce years ago! Apart from Milan's misgivings, there is another problem - the foursome's return to playing water polo is not going very well. There are only three left... and that's a hell of a lot... To save the group and pull his friend Jakub out of his depression, Kryštof decides to bring the aquabels to the pool with whom he wants to practice his performance. Honza is not too enthusiastic about Kryštof's plan at first, but later with the vision of rescuing a friend (and the possibility of being in the presence of beautiful aquabels) everyone starts preparing a performance called "Husband of the Hour".

Father Holy, a village priest, battles against the state and religious bureaucracies of 1980s Czechoslovakia in his fight to raise money for a new church roof. Permeated by his love for the villagers, his encounters are marked by his good humor. In his losing battle against Church and State, Holy is ordered to be transferred away from his parish and his allies. The Czech-American, Milena Jelinek, adapted this moving story from the the novel The Forgotten Light, by the 1930s Czech writer/poet and Catholic priest Jakub Deml. (1934)

By some quirk of fate, the two small-time thieves and the spoiled princess find themselves in the Black Forest full of magic beings who believe that everyone has a chance to mend his ways. However, sometimes even the best intentions need to take a pretty long way round to be achieved... Funny fairy tale full of action, excitement, fun, magic but also love.

Dana is young medical student with no self esteem, she can't deal with life, people and even not with herself. After her boyfriend leaves her, she changes to selfish woman, manipulating people and making them to serve her. She plays with her husband, neighbors and friends - for her own good and for fun.

Beata Parkanová, the filmmaker behind Moments, returns to Karlovy Vary with an exceptionally vivid portrait of the family of notary Václav Vojíř, a small-town moral authority, and his selfless wife Věra. This masterfully told and highly original intimate drama, whose protagonists undergo a difficult ordeal in the summer of 1968, is reinforced by finely wrought, exquisite performances from Martin Finger and Gabriela Mikulková.

Based on a best-selling novel by Michal Viewegh, Angels of everyday focuses on a few intimate family members: a recently widowed young doctor Ester; a school canteen cook and her son; a driving instructor, his wife, and their closest relatives.

Two young technicians, Filos and Kája, come to a small village that is a bit cut off from the rest of the world in order to find the best place to install a new station for the reception of a cell phone signal. Their arrival understandably arouses a feeling of expectation among the locals, especially when they learn of the interesting financial reward for the owner of the land on which the transmitter will stand. A fight flares up in the village over this reward, and all weapons, those permitted and those not, are put into use. Of course, there is also the question of whether Filos and Kája will be able to live up to the expectations that have been placed on them. Maybe they aren't even who they claim to be...

A sensual summer comedy for discerning audiences. In a small town with a nostalgic swimming pool, a variety bar, and a pink pastry shop, a couple in love, an aging playboy, a lifeguard, and a variety artist named Marčélo and his much younger wife Eliška are constantly fighting. Their encounters are full of jealousy and sensual love. Their relationship is disrupted by Marčélo's son Mican and, in particular, the sensual barmaid Hedvika. However, there is also the strange director Motýlek, who is in town to shoot a film.

An image and music collage - a cinema concert - guided by a young sound engineer David, for whom the exhibition on E. F. Burian is an incentive to take more interest in this avant-garde artist. The film interweaves two strands - documentary and factual, drawing on contemporary material and archival images - and fictional with the story of David the sound engineer.

The great musical comedy by F. A. Brabec V perine is the first Czech film made entirely in 3D. This stimulating comedy, in true and thorough 3D, presents a whole new computer-made world concealed in a quilt, where a large part of the film is taking place. The film V perine is a musical comedy made in the high-spirited style of Mamma Mia. In a relaxed world, where everybody used to dance rock'n'roll and the streets were full of pink Cadillacs, good and bad dreams hidden in our quilts take form. The musical adventure culminates in the magical world of dreams.

Princess Verunka's marriage is supposed to save the kingdom, which has been impoverished by the crazy ideas of its ruler. And she has several suitors! The poet Alexander Alexandrovich, who would make even Pushkin pale with envy, the two-headed baron, military leader and composer Wajsman, the mysterious Marquis, who rules with the magic of his mother, the queen of death Morana, and the eccentric inventor Sir Klevr. Can Ondra, a boy who longs to become a whitewater swimmer, be their worthy opponent?

A comedy about erotically addicted men is therapy for everyone, especially those who think they don't need therapy. At a session for erotically addicted men, Eda, the owner of a bicycle repair shop, meets Cyril, a history and physical education teacher; GIGI, an aging rocker; Přemek, a retired screenwriter; and Martin, a young IT specialist. The therapy is led by Linda, a recent graduate and single woman, for whom meeting this group of diverse male characters becomes a fateful step not only in her professional career.

Honza Marak has long since abandoned a career in IT and has bought a cottage on the outskirts of a small village, where he’s settled in with his wife Marketa, daughter Anyna and son Sayen. He works in the woods as a forest labourer repairing roads and enclosures, cutting wood to sell and assisting the foresters. Marketa earns a living as a masseuse and alternative healer, making use of various mind-altering plants and mushrooms, which leads to conflict with the old inhabitants and eventually with drug enforcement. Daughter Anyna attends a distant school where her grades deteriorate as she wanders the woods learning from nature rather than from her textbooks.

Four swimmers - water polo players find themselves at the bottom of their existence after losing a match. So desperate that they even find themselves living at the bottom of their emptied pool. To save their "dignity" they start a questionable business "Husband to rent" fixing home items for local housewives. But as time will show the household items are not the only things they end up repairing.

Three mimes represent beetles in the real world of human habitation, which is proportionally huge for their beetle-like dimensions. They experience an extraordinary adventure of discovering ordinary things in human habitation.

Teenager Agata lives with her mother Magda, who was fired from her job. Magda decides to go into business, opens a hairdressing salon. However, thanks to a swindler and an unfortunate game of fate, she loses all the money she has invested and the roof over her head. They move to a social hostel, where 14-year-old Agata discovers a forbidden world. While Magda struggles to find a livelihood, Agáta gets involved with a gang on the estate. She tries her first cigarettes, alcohol, experiences theft on trams, violence, fear, but also liberating irresponsibility...

A commemorative and essayistic meditative piece on the Prague quarter Libeň during the 1950s.

Helena, a free-spirited single café owner, takes her eight-year-old son Mikuláš to the mountains for a quiet Advent stay but, through a mix-up, ends up at a remote high-altitude lodge run by adventure guide Richard, his spirited daughter Zuzka, and his sociable brother Mišo. Unbeknownst to Helena, her parents also arrive, insisting the family spend Christmas together. Amid snowbound isolation, cultural clashes between city visitors and mountain folk, playful rivalries between the children, and unexpected challenges transform her planned retreat.

The movie is a satirical look at foreign occupation - a medieval Czech jester entertains a German king and his French wife, or a modern Czech villager helps a Bavarian hunter and his French wife find wild boar in Bohemia - the story switches back and forth between the two plots and time-periods.

A report is fabricated accusing a successful businessman, Patrik Grossmann, of racism. When the media launches a full-blown campaign against him, the atmosphere gets so thick that anyone can kick him while he's down just to prove their morality.

Just like every year, Dr. Burke comes to visit the old man who is being cared for by his nurse Dobruše. In a small, not very cosy room, the two friends have incredible adventures in which, thanks to their imagination, the most ordinary things change their function, fantasies become reality and a crazy world is created in which everything is possible. This experimental film, which is essentially a game within a game, completely breaks away from the usual standard of Barrandov productions and has rightly caught the attention of critics and insider viewers alike.

A tale of a boy whose desire to correct human vices was stronger than the power of hell itself. Apolena, a herbalist, finds an abandoned newborn baby in a rye field. She names him Rye and raises him into a brave young man. Rye is recruited into the king's army and the king's evil advisor, Prince Neklan, orders him to collect taxes from his subjects. Rye learns first-hand how evil and unjust power can be and rebels against it. His sense of justice, joy of life and cleverness charm even Princess Adelka, but he also catches the eye of the devil Philistine, who would like to bring him to hell. So she disguises herself as the beautiful Marquise and tries to lure him to the benefits of evil: he will be rich and famous. But Rye cannot be lured. And so, in addition to Neklan, who is also trying to win Adelka, he must also fight against the power of hell itself.

Peter Kerekes’ documentary focuses on the Bata shoe empire and the quest to find the next generation of shoe makers