Zátopek

If you want to follow in Zátopek's footsteps, you’ll have a problem. There is an abundance of it, here and around the world, but most of it can be divided into three categories. Firstly, the celebratory one, where Zátopek is an undisputed legend of the Olympic sport, a pioneer of the drill and a connecting bridge between nations. These are the most common and, in fact, the most rewarding. Then there is the world of Zátopek, the "folksy, bonhomie-spewing storyteller" with all the (half-)truths, myths and stories. There is perhaps no other athlete (at least ours) about whom there are so many famous and well-known stories; and as it happens, some are embellished and others are not, some have a real basis, but different circumstances, and the most unbelievable ones are, you'd be surprised to know, true. Then there is the third, purely "Chekhovian" category of Zátopek: the informer, army officer, communist, poster boy for the system and active secret police collaborator. Ondříček and his team took, or rather "tried to take", the golden middle path "a little of each of those views, but never too much", meaning that it slides on the surface, it's not black and white about a pedestal Zátopek or a despicable communist snitch. But it's not about just Zatopek either, it's about a kind of inaccessible figure about whom we know no more at the end than at the beginning. It's artfully made, but it never breaks out of the plane of "a nice TV movie for a Sunday night with excellent performances". For a film with such global potential, about such a rewardingly ambiguous figure, that's punishingly little. (30/08/2021)

A running Bohemian Rhapsody and a world-class film that is rarely born in our country, because, like the real Zátopek, this film has a great chance of succeeding in the competition of foreign athletes. Yes, the way Ondříček tells Emil's story is perhaps more playful and, above all, more appealing to the audience than anything unexpected or controversial, but he is able to captivate, entertain and playfully maintain your attention for two hours (hence the introductory comparison to Bohemian Rhapsody). Václav Neužil and Martha Issová are absolutely great, just as the design is beautiful and careful, and Beata Hlavenková's music is, for me, the best domestic soundtrack since Three Brothers by Jaroslav Uhlíř and Michal Novinski. In addition, viewers around the world may receive Zátopek even better than we do, as they will not mind scenes such as the "communists pressure Zátopek because of his wife's origins," which we have already seen because they are in every other film. (11/09/2021)

Like Julius Ševčík five years ago with Masaryk, David Ondříček managed to make a biopic that would stand up well to comparison with foreign films. From a technical point of view, it is audiovisually well executed and does not look cheap or kitsch. The performances are to be commended, from the seemingly over-the-top Václav Neužil, to the principled Martha Issova, to the thuggish Robert Miklus. There were a couple of scenes that were, ahem, odd, but they get lost (in the crowd) compared to the quality of the rest of the film. The scene with the exhausted marathoner probably got me the most. The poetic and seemingly mismatched vision with the native did have its merit and "charm". (29/08/2021)

Qu'est-ce qu'on peut reprocher à Zátopek ? Eh bien, c'est encore un film biographique dans la lignée de ceux qui ne nous feront pas percer dans le monde. «Stérile» est l'adjectif qui me semble le plus approprié. Je ne remets pas en question la contribution de Zátopek au sport et à la notoriété de la Tchécoslovaquie dans le monde, notamment son héroïque performance aux Jeux olympiques d'Helsinki. Mais d'un autre côté, cet homme, qui n'a probablement rien fait d'autre dans sa vie, ne s'est consacré à rien d'autre et ne s'intéressait sans doute à rien d'autre, est censé être un modèle, une idole, un culte ?! Et faut-il faire des films de deux heures sur lui où il court, court, répète que rien d'autre ne l'intéresse, même pas la construction d'une famille ? Comparé à Chyby et Okupace, il perd et échoue clairement, ces deux films l'ayant surpassé quant à leur thème, leur traitement, leur progressivité. Question prestations d'acteurs, il a bien sûr offert une merveilleuse occasion à Václav Neužil, qui, avec son perfectionnisme, l'a saisie à bras-le-corps et a enrichi son palmarès. Le maquillage et la photographie sont également excellents. Mais ensuite ? Jusqu'à quand enverrons-nous de tels films à l'étranger et aux Oscars ? Jusqu'à ce que nous réalisions que ce genre de film n'intéresse personne hors de nos frontières ? (18/10/2023)

The editing may look a bit chaotic in places, but otherwise I think this biopic about the Czechoslovak legendary runner is really good. The filmmakers have managed to capture the atmosphere of the time perfectly, and it is not just a sports drama, the political situation of that time also plays an important role. David Ondříček shows the protagonist with all his pros and cons, while also looking into the private life of the Zátopeks. The actors are impeccable and I have absolutely no reservations about them. Václav Neužil Jr. in the title role certainly deserves an accolade, as he perfectly embodied the role of the runner Emil Zátopek. Of course, I must not forget Martha Issová representing Dana Zátopková, she also portrayed her role very believably. (80%) (02/05/2023)