This is a Resurfaced review written in 2002 or earlier. For more information, please visit this link: Resurfaced Reviews.

Closely Watched Trains

Rating

Director

Jirí Menzel

Screenplay

Bohumil Hrabal, Jirí Menzel (Novel: Bohumil Hrabal)

Length

1h 32m

Starring

Václav Neckár, Josef Somr, Vlastimil Brodský, Vladimír Valenta, Alois Vachek, Ferdinand Kruta, Jitka Bendová, Jitka Zelenohorská, Nada Urbánková, Libuse Havelková, Kveta Fialová, Pavla Marsálková, Milada Jezková

MPAA Rating

Not Rated

Basic Plot

A young man learns about life, sex and train watching.

Review

When people ask what countries produce the best films, immediately the United States, France, Italy and Japan leap to mind. If someone told you that Czechoslovakia was a gold mine of great films, you’d probably hear some laughing. To an extent, they are right. Since the 1960s, Czechoslovakia has not really generated any terrific or even moderately successful features. However, from 1962 to 1969, Czechoslovakia was a major boon of foreign films that even went to the Academy Awards.

Why then have we not seen much from Czechoslovakia? During the years behind the Iron Curtain, the Communist regimes took great strides to quash all of the major eastern European film industries. Both the Polish Lodz Film School, which gave us Roman Polanski, and the Prague Film School, one of the world’s most prestigious schools, were beaten into the dust and their products were never the same. Russia’s invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 was the beginning of the end for a country whose future could have been brilliant.

Before the Iron Curtain crushed the Czech film industry, it generated several well-known and highly respected films. “Closely Watched Trains” is one of those marvelous films from that era that used itself as a political statement.

Milos Hrma (Vaclav Neckar) came from a long line of non-militant train dispatchers and magicians. He was now of age to learn the trade and when we first meet him, his mother is dressing him in his new uniform and preparing him to continue the tradition.

Upon arrival, he first meets a philandering dispatcher named Hubicka (Josef Somr). Milos takes quickly to Hubicka and begins his journey into a world of trains, trains and more trains. The stationmaster, Max (Vladimir Valenta) is a rather obstinate overweight fellow who cannot stand that Hubicka is as free with the ladies as he is. He much prefers the gentle way of life he has with his wife (Libuse Havelkova).

Hrma has a crush on one of the conductors, a young woman named Masa (Jitka Bendova), but won’t make a sexual advance because he has a problem with premature ejaculation, something he can’t really bear to tell anyone.

The closely watched part comes from trains that are being driven through carrying explosives and equipment for the military. They are well guarded and the target of every Czech patriot.

“Closely Watched Trains” is a difficult movie to describe, because the majority of the plot is integral to the film’s understanding, but is to revealing to truly explain. Essentially, the dispatchers are Czech patriots who wish the war to be over and will do anything they can to help the cause. Max is a career Stationmaster, he will do anything to support those that pay him, even if they are on the wrong side of his underlings.

“Trains” is a tight political drama that defies conventional classification. It has so many elements common to several different genres that to classify it anywhere but political or drama would be dangerous. While no performance is beyond brilliant, each is adequate in its own right. The directing is affective and the story doesn’t disappoint.

“Closely Watched Trains” is a Czechoslovakian treat that makes you long for a rebirth of that same spirit that made its films so great in the first place.

Review Written

April 16, 1999