Prague Cans

The testimony of a generation (which, more than by the content and message of the movie, is delivered by Paster Oner and Vladimir 518) about how youths have nothing to do and so they get up to all sorts of mischief. And nor does middle aged Vorel know to do about that and so he gets up to all sorts of mischief. But unfortunately mischief behind the camera for an audience. It accepted all of the problems of part one from start to finish (annoying fade-outs after every other scene, grr!) and the same as in part one, everything stands or falls with Mádl alone; luckily (again the same as part one) it stands more than falls. If I were to mention a point where this movie falls, it’s Vorel Jr. and his non-actor tongue in a twist; which, unsurprisingly, applied to part one. As a result, on paper it is somewhat more serious and better than The Can, but in practice it is exactly the same with a different title; interesting to see, but there’s not much to it. (2014-01-22)

It's not as fun as the first one, but I quite appreciate Vorel's character development and his pinpointing of society's critical points. There are such beautifully grotesque characters, about whom you know they have dozens of prototypes, that it almost makes you feel sick. Moreover, it's beautifully visible how some characters have evolved from the first part, and how some are unable to escape from their messed-up world and change anything. (2015-05-14)

Although I literally consider Gympl to be one of the biggest Czech bullshit in recent years, I gave Vejška a chance. The sample looked good, in several reviews I read that it is a much more mature film and besides, Gympl already had its three positives - Mádl, Kraus and appropriate music. These three positives also apply to Vejška and others are added, a pleasant refreshment is Eva Josefíková and the fact that she is not Mádl's partner in the film. Personally, I hate graffiti-covered and destroyed buildings, but fortunately in Vejška they mostly spray on ugly buildings or on designated areas in public spaces. I agree with the criticism that Vejška is not coherent, it is rather a mosaic of short scenes, some funny, some more serious. It is excellent that Vorel limited the absurdity, exaggeration, and idiocy from Gympl to a minimum level, so they can easily be overlooked. I just hope that Zuzana Bydžovská doesn't receive a nomination or an award again and maybe for mysterious reasons like this year for the lead role. I feel that it is enough for her to croak her voice, undress naked or squint her eyes and nominations for all possible awards are already heading her way. I acknowledge her as a good actress, but I wouldn't overestimate her. Overall impression very positive, quite a surprise for me personally and I am glad that I did not ignore Vejška due to a bad experience with Gympl. (2014-02-26)

I can’t help it, I didn’t feel sowell after watching Prague Cans. In case of The Can, I had a few laughs and at the end told myself that it was quite a good comedy. This movie, however, cannot be considered a comedy, unless you accept the very dark humor, typical for the Sklep Theater. It features a perpetually drunk mother, a father who has half the bigwigs of Prague eating out of his hand and a girl who sells her body for cash. Three classic motifs that make a normal person’s stomach sick. Add in the gloomy rap music by Vladimir 518 and a story that has hardly any plot, which however isn’t really a problem in a movie like this. Anyhow, the actors Mádl and Kraus are the best thing in this flick. I would like to see Kraus in more movies. (2014-11-28)

Compared to The Can, Prague Cans is much more dramatically tuned. The comedy elements have mostly disappeared and the storylines full of tragicomedy and bitterness have come to the fore. The film features quite aggressive music, which enhances the bleak atmosphere and the fate of the main characters. I was most impressed by the performance of Zuzana Bydžovská, who appears only a couple, but her performances made a strong impression on me. In short, not a bad film for Czech standards and it doesn’t do a disservice to the genre. (2017-02-26)