Kolja by Jan Sverak - Movie Review Example

Kolja by Jan Sverak The film Kolja is the production of the father and son team of Zdenak and Jan Sverak and is their second film, produced in 1996. Their first film was the successful Obecne Skole – the “Elementary School”, which was nominated for an Oscar award as Best Foreign Film. But it was their second film Kolja which won the father-son team the Oscar. The talent of the father son team that was evident during the earlier film and the potential that existed within it culminated in the second film, which earned them the well deserved Oscar. The film Kolya is notable for the underlying political questions it raises, despite its main subject matter as a dramatic, heart warming family story of an evolving relationship between a young boy and his stepfather. It is a story that occurs during the Communist regime in the Czech republic, a time when the country was under Soviet occupation. This was a grim period in the country’s history, when there was a curtailment of freedoms and people lived under the constant threat of police brutality in an atmosphere of suspicion and lack of freedom. But the film Kolya presents this period in a more mellow manner, interlaced with humor and comedy, which is perhaps not completely true to the realities of the actual day. This raises the underlying question that appears to be on the minds of modern Czechs – have they really benefited after freedom from Soviet occupation? The Country is going through considerable turmoil in present times as it struggles to establish itself as a democratic state. The economy is in poor shape with high numbers of Czech people unemployed, while unemployment was a phenomenon that was virtually unknown during Communist rule. The corruption that was prevalent during Soviet rule is however still prevalent and possibly, this may have led Czechs to wonder whether they were perhaps better off during Communist rule, when economic uncertainties did not plague them? This is the underlying motif that appears to have motivated Director Jan Sverak and the aura of positivity in the presentation of the Communist era in the film appears to reflect this. The protagonist of the story is Franstisek Louka, an ageing musician who loses his position in the state orchestra and finds himself in a difficult financial situation, having to make ends meet by playing at funerals and by painting tombstones. He marries a Russian woman desperate to stay on in Czechoslovakia, so that she can get her papers. Louka hopes to make money off this scheme and improve his financial position. But the Russian woman chooses to leave the country instead, emigrating to West Germany to be with her lover there. She leaves her young son Kolya with his grandmother and when the old woman dies, young Kolya comes to live with his stepfather, Louka. The musician now becomes obliged to take care of the young boy. This presents some problems for fifty-five year old Louka because of his flamboyant love life which is not appropriate for a young child of five. Another barrier is the difference in language, young Kolya speaks only Russian and does not understand Czech, while Louka on the other hand, does not speak any Russian at all. These differences create a mutually awkward situation and barriers in communication which Louka and Kolya must overcome. The evolving father-son relationship between these two protagonists is set against a backdrop of the Russian military occupation of Prague. This structural backdrop is helpful in heightening the tensions in the film, because Louka is forced to accept little Kolya in his home, to avert police suspicion and action at the very least. The Russian presence throughout the film creates an atmosphere of restriction and suspicion, a tense backdrop to the initially awkward relationship between Kolya and Louka, which slowly blossoms and deepens into a heart warming relationship. The Russian presence also highlights the cost association and dependency of the Czech Republic with the Soviet Union, and the profound Russian influence on the Czech. The history of the country is characterized by the Soviet occupation and this has been brought to an end with the end of the Soviet occupation. But the film itself incorporates this theme and the Russian occupation forms the background to the entire film. The unpleasantness associated with the occupation is revealed at several points during the film, especially when Louka is interrogated by the police, although all of this is laced with a comic element that casts a haze over the harsh realities. This is one important aspect of the film – the use of comedy to present grimmer realities in a more palatable light. For example, Louka lives at the top of a tower in the center of Prague and has a beautiful view of the castle from his window, whereas the reality for most Czechs was accommodation in drab Communist blocks of flats. While he is the object of Communist brutality in the film, the manner in which it is presented softens the harsh impact. When Louka is interrogated by the Russian police for example, he is unable to find a baby sitter for Kolya and takes him along. The interrogator appears to be a comic caricature rather than a threatening or sinister figure, and Kolya’s presence throws events into confusion, presenting a mock comical presentation of the sinister event. Language is not the only barrier between Louka and young Kolya, the language barrier represents the cultural barriers between the Russians and the Czechs. With the animosity existing between the occupying Russians and the invaded Czechs, these cultural differences are only highlighted further. The underlying theme that permeates the film is this lack of cultural understanding between the Russians and the Czech and the inability to arrive at a mutual understanding. But the relationship between Kolya and Louka is a symbolic representation of how this gap in understanding is bridged. As the tensions between the Russians and the Czech become more acute with the progress of the film and the political situation only reflects more and more tension, the relationship between Kolya and Louka blossoms as the once-confirmed bachelor learns to take on the responsibility of caring for a young child. One of the important themes in this film is interruption, which occurs constantly. For example, Louka’s stable career as a musician in the State orchestra is interrupted when he makes a sarcastic, inappropriate remark which throws him into the brink of poverty. Secondly, his plans to get rich quick are interrupted when his Russian wife runs away to be with her West German lover and little Koyla arrives at his home interrupting him in the process of having sex. Similarly, Koyla is delighted when he discovers that the Russian soldiers are speaking his language and he proceeds to interrupt their work by asking them questions and conversing with them. The greatest theme of interruption is the Russian occupation, firstly the interruption of the Czech destiny when it is taken over by the Soviet occupation and the interruption of this occupation after the disintegration of the Soviet Union. This theme of constant discontinuity and interruption permeates the entire film and is an underlying symbolic representation of the unstable elements of Louka’s life, notably in his love life which is replete with a constant stream of lovers and the attendant loneliness, together with the instability of not having a regular job. But when Louka takes on the responsibility for Kolya as his son by the end of the film, love and stability have entered his life. This also symbolically represents the bridging of the cultural gap between the Russians and the Czech and presents a rosy picture of the bygone Communist regime. Reference: * Kolya. Film directed by Jan Sverak. Read More