Lajka (in English: ''Laika'') is a 2017 Czech
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
comedy
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
animated film
Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...
. It is inspired by Soviet space dog
Laika.
Plot
In the Soviet town of
Baikonur
Baikonur ( kk, Байқоңыр, ; russian: Байконур, translit=Baykonur), formerly known as Leninsk, is a city of republic significance in Kazakhstan on the northern bank of the Syr Darya river. It is currently leased and administered ...
,
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
, a female stray dog is captured while scavenging for food to feed her puppies. She is named Laika and brought to the
local spaceport. Professor Voroljov and his assistant Kokotov begin preparing Laika for space travel. On the day before the launch, Laika manages to get out of her cage and visits the space rocket. Then she returns for her puppies and smuggles them into the rocket.
The following day she is launched into space along with her pups hidden in the rocket. The news of Laika's travel to space arrive to the United States. The Americans, in response, send a chimpanzee named
Ham to space. Ham is soon followed by other rockets with various animals.
All rockets arrive at a planet named Qem. They meet the natives of the planet and are accompanied by a native named Quirkrk. The animals are happy in the new environment as there are no humans. The Soviets however soon send cosmonaut Jurij Levobočkin to space. He is initially sent to the Moon but arrives at Qem instead. He then meets Lajka, and settles down, but soon begins craving meat. Qem's natives soon go missing; it is revealed that Levobočkin invented a "freezer gun" and is hunting and eating them. Laika and Ham are fighting him just as he is about to bake Quirkrk. The clash ends when Levobočkin falls into the furnace, and the animals leave. Levobočkin, however, survives, now wanting revenge, and the animals prepare for battle against him. The American astronaut Neil Knokaut arrives and eventually joins Levobočkin in hunting. Laika outsmarts them and Levobočkin and Knokaut freeze each other.
Voice actors
*
Helena Dvořáková
Helena Dvořáková or Helena Dvořák (born 30 January 1979) is a Czech actress.
Biography
She was born in Brno, Czechoslovakia. She studied at an academic gymnasium and later continued her studies of dramatic arts at the Janáček Academy ...
as
Laika
*
Karel Zima as Jurij Levobočkin
*
Petr Čtvrtníček as Quirkrk
*
Jan Vondráček
Jan Vondráček (born 16 August 1966 in Prague) is a Czech actor and dubber. He starred in the film '' Operace Silver A'' under director Jiří Strach in 2007. From 9 January 2023, he is the voice announcer for Trams in Prague, as part of the Pra ...
as
Ham
*
Miroslav Táborský
Miroslav Táborský (born 9 November 1959 in Prague, Czechoslovakia) is a Czech actor who has appeared on Czech television series, as well as in American movies.
Táborský studied physics at the University of Hradec Králové, and then graduate ...
as Neil Knokaut
*
Robert Nebřenský
Robert Nebřenský (born 8 February 1964) is a Czech actor, musician, comedian, songwriter, and composer.
In years 1986–2002 and since 2010 to this day, Nebřenský has been active in Czech rock music band Vltava.
In the beginnings of his ...
as Professor Voroljov
*
Jan Budař
Jan Budař (born 31 July 1977) is a Czech actor, director, singer, composer and script writer.
Biography
Budař was born in Frýdlant near Liberec. He graduated from the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts (JAMU) in Brno in 2000. He ...
as Assistant Kokotov
Awards
*
2017 Czech Lion Awards
2017 Czech Lion Awards ceremony was held on 10 March 2018. Ice Mother has won 6 awards including Award for the best film.
Winners and nominees
Non-statutory Awards
* Best Film Poster
**''Barefoot'' - Jiří Karásek, Lukáš Fišárek
* Film ...
, Stage Design category winner
See also
*
List of animated feature-length films
References
External links
*
Lajka.eu- official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lajka
2017 films
2010s Czech-language films
2010s science fiction comedy films
Czech animated science fiction films
Czech science fiction comedy films
Czech Lion Awards winners (films)
Czech animated comedy films
Czech animated musical films
Animated films set in the Soviet Union
Films set in Kazakhstan
Films set in 1957
Cold War films
Animated films about dogs
Animated films about apes
Animated films about monkeys
Films about extraterrestrial life
Animated films set in the 1950s
Animated films set in Asia