''Happy End'' is a 1967 Czechoslovak comedy film directed by

Oldřich Lipský Oldřich Lipský (4 July 1924 – 19 October 1986) was a Czech film director and screenwriter, brother of actor Lubomír Lipský. All his films were comedies, frequently employing themes of Dadaism, farce and magical realism. He was a frequent c ...

. Theodor Pištěk designed the costumes for the film. The film is told backwards, beginning with the protagonist's death (which he describes as his birth) and ending with his birth (described as his death).

Plot

''Happy end'' tells the life story of a butcher named Bedřich Frydrych; however, it is told entirely in reverse, giving rise to a different story than the one a forward-flowing narrative would depict. It thus begins with Bedřich's "birth" (his execution by

guillotine A guillotine is an apparatus designed for efficiently carrying out executions by beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secured with stocks at th ...

), followed by a "childhood" spent in school (prison), whereupon he sets out into the world and soon marries, although he has to assemble his wife-to-be from various parts (killing and dismembering her, after finding out she is having an affair). The reversed chronology also applies to dialogue: lines are read in an ostensibly reversed order, variously resulting in sheer situational comedy and

dada Dada () or Dadaism was an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century, with early centres in Zürich, Switzerland, at the Cabaret Voltaire (Zurich), Cabaret Voltaire (in 1916). New York Dada began c. 1915, and after 192 ...

Cast

Vladimír Menšík Vladimír Menšík (9 October 1929 – 29 May 1988) was a popular Czech actor and entertainer, born in Ivančice, Moravia, Czechoslovakia. Both comedian and serious actor, he created a wide range of lively characters. He starred in more than 12 ...

- Butcher Bedřich Frydrych *

Jaroslava Obermaierová Jaroslava Obermaierová (born 10 April 1946 in Prague) is a Czech actress. She starred in the 1969/1970 film ''Witchhammer'' under director Otakar Vávra, as well as the TV-series Ulice. References

1946 births Living people Actresses fro ...

- Julie *

Josef Abrhám Josef Abrhám (14 December 1939 – 16 May 2022) was a Czech film and theatre actor. Biography He originally began studying acting at Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava and later moved to Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts i ...

- Ptáček *

Bohuš Záhorský Bohumil "Bohuš" Záhorský (5 February 1906 – 22 September 1980) was a Czechoslovak actor. He appeared in more than one hundred films from 1932 to 1980. Selected filmography References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zahorsky, Bohus ...

- Father-in-law *

Stella Zázvorková Stella Zázvorková (14 April 1922 – 18 May 2005) was a Czech actress from Prague. Zázvorková, an alumnus of Prague's theatre school of E.F. Burian, appeared in more than a hundred films and series. She was married to the actor Miloš ...

- Mother-in-law *

Jaroslav Štercl Jaroslav (also written as Yaroslav (disambiguation), Yaroslav or Jarosław (disambiguation), Jarosław in other Slavic languages) is a Slavic name, Czech and Slovak first name, pagan in origin. There are several possible origins of the name Jaros ...

- Constable *

Helena Růžičková Helena Růžičková (13 June 1936 in Prague – 4 January 2004 in Plzeň) was a Czech actress. Above all, Helena Růžičková was known for her comedic talents, and for films produced in the Czech Republic and East Germany. She became popular es ...

- Brunette *

Josef Hlinomaz Josef Hlinomaz (9 October 1914 – 8 August 1978) was a Czechoslovak film actor, journalist, and painter. He appeared in more than 150 films and television shows between 1948 and 1978. Selected filmography * ''Komedianti'' (1954) * ''The ...

- Commissioner *

Martin Růžek Martin Růžek, born Erhard Martin (23 September 1918 – 18 December 1995) was a Czech actor. He starred in the film ''Poslední propadne peklu'' under director Ludvík Ráža in 1982. Personal life Růžek was born on 23 September 1918 in Če ...

- Prosecutor *

Jiří Steimar Jiří (; ''YI-RZHEE''), the Czech is a masculine given name, equivalent to English George, may refer to: Given name B * Jiří Antonín Benda * Jiří Baborovský *Jiří Barta *Jiří Bartoška * Jiří Bicek * Jiří Bobok *Jiří Bubla * Ji ...

Bedřich Prokos Bedřich or Bedrich may refer to: * Bedrich Benes (born 1967), computer scientist and a researcher in Computer Graphics * Bedřich Bloudek, Czech military leader who participated in the Slovak Uprising in 1848 * Bedřich Bridel (1619–1680), Czec ...

- Priest *

Mirko Musil Mirko (Cyrillic script: Мирко) is a masculine given name of South Slavic origin. By Slavic etymology, the name is composed of the root ''mir'' (meaning peace) and hypocoristic suffix ''-ko'' usual in South Slavic languages, which together me ...

- Warden

External links

* 1966 comedy films 1966 films Czechoslovak black-and-white films Films directed by Oldřich Lipský Nonlinear narrative films Czech comedy films 1960s Czech-language films 1960s Czech films {{1960s-comedy-film-stub