''Pearls of the Deep'' () is a 1966 Czechoslovak

anthology film An anthology film (also known as an omnibus film or a portmanteau film) is a single film consisting of three or more shorter films, each complete in itself and distinguished from the other, though frequently tied together by a single theme, premise ...

directed by

Jiří Menzel Jiří Menzel () (23 February 1938 – 5 September 2020) was a Czech film director, theatre director, actor, and screenwriter. His films often combine a humanistic view of the world with sarcasm and provocative cinematography. Some of these films ...

Jan Němec Jan Němec (12 July 1936 – 18 March 2016) was a Czech filmmaker whose most important work dates from the 1960s. Film historian Peter Hames has described him as the "enfant terrible of the Czech New Wave." Biography Němec's career as a fi ...

Evald Schorm Evald Schorm (15 December 1931 – 14 December 1988) was a Czech film and stage director, screenwriter and actor. He directed 26 films between 1959 and 1988. Schorm was a notable exponent of the Czech New Wave, Czech Film New Wave. Biograph ...

Věra Chytilová Věra Chytilová (; 2 February 1929 – 12 March 2014) was an avant-garde Czech film director and pioneer of Czech cinema. Banned by the Czechoslovakia, Czechoslovak government in the 1960s, she is best known for her Czech New Wave 1966 film ''S ...

and

Jaromil Jireš Jaromil Jireš (10 December 1935 – 24 October 2001) was a director associated with the Czechoslovak New Wave movement. Work His 1963 film '' The Cry'' was entered into the 1964 Cannes Film Festival. It is often described as the first film o ...

. The five segments are all based on short stories by

Bohumil Hrabal Bohumil Hrabal (; 28 March 1914 – 3 February 1997) was a Czech Republic, Czech writer, often named among the best Czech writers of the 20th century. Early life Hrabal was born in Židenice (suburb of Brno) on 28 March 1914, in what was then ...

. The film was released in Czechoslovakia on 7 January 1966. The film was received as a manifesto for the new generation of Czechoslovak filmmakers, and thus became closely associated with the

Czechoslovak New Wave The Czechoslovak New Wave (also Czech/Slovak New Wave) is a term used for the Czechoslovak filmmakers who started making films in the 1960s. The directors commonly included are Miloš Forman, Věra Chytilová, Jan Švankmajer, Ivan Passer, Pave ...

Plot

* The Death of Mr Balthazar (Smrt pana Baltazara), directed by

- A couple take their elderly father to watch the motorcycle races. The wife has

perfect pitch Perfect commonly refers to: * Perfection; completeness, and excellence * Perfect (grammar), a grammatical category in some languages Perfect may also refer to: Film and television * ''Perfect'' (1985 film), a romantic drama * ''Perfect'' (20 ...

and can identify motorcycles by the sound of their engine. They all get very drunk and meet a man who lost his legs in a motorcycle accident. Together they discuss the deaths of their favorite motorcyclists in auto accidents. The race begins and a motorcyclist named Balthazar crashes and dies. The man with no legs remarks he hates how that always happens near him when he goes to a motorcycling event. The couple and their father leave and the father discusses his favorite beer manufactured in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. * Imposters (Podvodníci), directed by

- Two old men who are about to die construct false biographies for themselves. One man claims to have been a successful opera singer and the other a successful journalist. * House of Joy (Dům radosti), directed by

- Two insurance agents visit an eccentric painter and goat farmer and his mother. * At the World Cafeteria (Automat Svět), directed by

- A wedding reception takes place at a diner. The guests are able to stay oblivious of the surrounding misery. * Romance, directed by

- A working-class boy becomes infatuated with a Roma girl.

Cast

;"The Death of Mr Balthazar" * Pavla Marsálková as Matka *

Ferdinand Krůta Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "courage" or "ready, prepared" related to Old High German "to risk, ventu ...

as Otec František * Alois Vachek as Mrzák * Emil Iserle as Stryc * Miroslav Nohýnek as Chlapec * Vlasta Spánková as Dívka *

as Bicyclist ;"Imposters" * Miloš Čtrnáctý as Zpěvák * František Havel as Novinář * Josef Hejl as Holič *

Jan Vašák Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to: Acronyms * Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN * Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code * Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group * Japanese Article Numb ...

as Zřízenec * Jiří Reichl as Boy with fracture ;"House of Joy" * Josefa Pechlatová as Matka * Václav Žák as Malíř *

Ivan Vyskočil Ivan Vyskočil (born 21 May 1946 in Prague) is a Czech actor. He starred in the film '' Poslední propadne peklu'' under director Ludvík Ráža Ludvík Ráža (3 October 1929, in Mukachevo – 4 October 2000, in Prague Prague ( ; ) is t ...

as Uředník * Antonín Pokorny as Uředník ;"At the World Cafeteria" * Věra Mrázková as Nevesta *

Vladimír Boudník Vladimír Boudník (17 March 1924 – 5 December 1968) was a Czech graphic artist and photographer. He was a key figure in Czech post-war art and a representative of the "explosionism" movement. He is best known for his active and structural graph ...

as Vytvarník *

Alžběta Laštovková Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Empress Elisabeth (disambiguation), lists various empresses named ''Elisabeth'' or ''Elizabeth'' * Princess Elizabeth ( ...

as Výčepní * Václav Chochola as SNB * Jan Vala as Cock * Aleš Košnar as Mládenec *

as Bohumil Hrabal ;"Romance" * Dana Valtová as Gypsy girl *

as Gaston * Karel Jeřábek as Hlídač * František Příhoda as Watcher

The Junk Shop

Juraj Herz originally made his short film '' The Junk Shop'' to be included in this movie, but it was omitted due to the running time.

References

External links

''Pearls of the Deep''
at

The Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home video, home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films". A "sister company" of art film, arth ...

''Pearls of the Deep''
at

IMDb IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

* {{Jaromil Jireš 1966 drama films 1966 films Czechoslovak drama films 1960s Czech-language films Films based on short fiction Films based on works by Bohumil Hrabal Films directed by Jiří Menzel Films directed by Jan Němec Films directed by Evald Schorm Films directed by Věra Chytilová Films directed by Jaromil Jireš Czech anthology films Films scored by Jan Klusák