Long Live the Family!

Un bon téléfilm avec des émotions et une touche de sincérité, qui n'a pas la moindre raison d'être vu sur grand écran. Et n'oubliez pas que les honnêtes vivent dans de petits appartements en immeubles tandis que ceux avec une Mercedes et une maison moderne sont entre les mains de la loi. (17/10/2011)

Undoubtedly the most mature and important work by Sedláček, although (again) it is not without mistakes and slight confusion. First of all, it must be pointed out that it is finally a film by this director with a world face. The camera is excellent, the work with the pre-camera space is complex, natural and disturbing (in the context of Czech film, the scenes with the dying dog the fireworks boat on the Morava River act as an revelation from another galaxy), the soundtrack is not a slow accompaniment, but sometimes dictates the mood of the shots. The following things still remain valid: a) Robert Sedláček is probably the only Czech filmmaker capable of making a film about the present as a critical satire that is not embarrassing, awkward or bile-like, b) Robert Sedláček is one of the few Czech filmmakers who can combine an authentic performance with a certain form of theatricality, and therefore civil comedy and psychological drama coexist in his film, c) what Robert Sedláček says about the present is accurate, considered and precisely formulated. His latest film is the most comprehensive attempt to grasp interpersonal relationships in a crisis-torn society. The fact that he watches everything from the perspective of the family adds urgency to his testimony, but it does not in any way force the viewer to have a ready-made opinion (including the main protagonist, who is a question mark to the end). There is something depressing, yet blatant, in Sedláček's perception of Czech liberal-capitalist society, something that results from the story naturally and does not have to be helped with a hammer (if we set aside Vorel's billionaire amuck). In addition, some of the scenes are brilliantly constructed and written. Some of the others stand out a bit, and the overall concept of the film is looser and sharper than it needs to be, which kind of undermines the more complete tuning. But who cares. After probes into the large intestine of a Czech petty bourgeois, there is finally an incision. One that is almost sagittal. P.S. In addition, this is also a film in which the typical faces from Czech film only play second fiddle and the music is claimed by a significantly better "theatrical" guard headed by the frosty precise Chmela and the carelessly perfect Finger. (22/09/2011)

When it comes right down to it, it's actually not about anything groundbreaking. This sympathetic morality tale, which fits much better on a television screen than on a film screen, benefits from the fact that it doesn't display the common weaknesses of Czech films, such as an unbelievable script, stupid dialogues, and unrealistic or flat characters. You believe the feelings of that unlucky man who, in exchange for a managerial position, occasionally overlooked something generously, until suddenly he faced accusations of embezzling the company, and you also believe the reactions of those around him. Long Live the Family!  is a peculiar road movie about late realization and escape from responsibility and it is well-written, acted, and directed. What more can we actually expect from Czech cinema? Overall impression: 70%. (13/09/2014)

"Villain or hero, all one family". It nicely captures the depiction of the state of Czech society, the script is not complicated and it is directed well (I just wonder what Mr Sedláček liked so much about the camera cranes and why there are so many "rising shots"), but it does have a few drawbacks. I don't know, maybe it's the fact that I'm not a woman, let alone the wife of a tunneler, but I really didn't understand the behavior of the wife of our (anti)hero. She didn't get the message? Could she really have overlooked such an easy excuse for a trip? Hadn't she thought that her husband, who had obviously never been short of money, might have been involved too, since so many of his superiors had recently ended up in custody? I could believe that "something" blinded her... But the plot would have to convince me of that somehow. The second exceedingly suspicious thing was the search for the titular family, especially the final stupid police maneuver and - especially - the failure to use the helicopter when it would have been damn well needed. Such blunders only make Long Live the Family! a slightly better than average film. (11/06/2012)

Un excellent film dont le point faible est, selon moi, la fin peu réaliste. Je respecte Robert Sedláček et le considère comme l’un de nos meilleurs réalisateurs actuels ; chacun de ses films est original à sa manière et diffère totalement du précédent. Igor Chmela est un maître tant au théâtre qu’au cinéma et le reste de la distribution est supérieure à la moyenne. En tant que diplômé du lycée de Strážnice, les vues de la petite ville du sud de la Moravie m’ont enchanté et je me suis bien amusé avec la visite chez le duo Babčáková-Vyorálek. (18/08/2012)