![]() As Slovak film historian Václav Macek notes, up until 1918, Slovak cinema was under the purview of Hungarian authorities, and, as such, often catered to an Austro-Hungarian audience (cf. ![]() Some of this early divide between the Slovak spectator and Slovak film, or more precisely the lack of such films, can be attributed to socioeconomic factors. Films made by Hungarian, Austrian, and Czech producers often focused on Slovakia’s stunning natural vistas or the vibrant folk-culture that survived in its mountains while Slovaks themselves were, with a few exceptions, relegated to on-screen talent or local color. Rather, although Slovaks themselves were exposed to cinema in a variety of ways- Slovak immigration, traveling cinema shows, scientific demonstrations in the major cities- Slovakia and Slovaks remained mostly spectators and subjects of cinema rather than its producers up until the 1930s. Although the Slovaks’ closest neighbors (linguistically, culturally, politically, and geographically speaking), the Czechs, had a robust early cinematic culture, Slovaks themselves were conspicuously absent from the development of early cinema in their own sphere, though this is not to say they were unaware of the new medium. While many national cinemas (such as American, British, German, and Russian film) began their formative development shortly after the first public screenings of the Lumière Brothers’ cinematograph in 1895, cinema in Slovakia had a much different genesis and evolution. Instead, I would like to call attention to Slovak film’s rather unorthodox development process and its forgotten multiculturalism, as well as underscoring how these factors have shaped the development of this unique national cinema up until its arrested development, following the 1968 Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia and 1972’s Normalization, the period of political repression that ended the golden age of Slovak film. This article aims to not only give an overview of the broader historical development, but to problematize the normal conception of Slovak cinema being either “Czechoslovak” or purely “Slovak”. This language has its forerunners in the Slovak graphic art of the thirties and forties (Bazovský, Fulla), and in some neglected literary traditions (e.g., Slovak surrealism). A lyricism with an inner charge of tragedy that is unique to authentic folklore an the folk ballad. …a language of intense lyricism, closely linked with the wild Slovak countryside, as yet unspoiled by urban life, still free of the sentimentality and banality imposed by the city. This combination of old folkloric traditions and modernist (and post-modernist) experimentation was often productive, producing an aesthetic that the Czech film historian Antonín J. Although what exactly constituted a “Slovak” film was a fairly fluid concept for much of its early history, a significant portion of films by and for Slovaks shared an aesthetic that drew its formative influences from the indigenous folk traditions of Slovakia, as well as from the avant-garde photographic and painting traditions propagated in Prague and Bratislava. and that does it a not bad proposition to the large public.Although Czech and Slovak cinema are commonly thought of as different sides of the same coin, what is termed “Slovak cinema” possesses a unique aesthetic completely removed from its more urban Czech brother. a not insignificant detail - he is not a version of Robin Hood or Fanfan la Tulip. and to remind one of the fights for freedom from a region of Europe. because it is an instrument to discover a Slovakian national symbol. ![]() but it is one of the most ambition projects about the theme. useful as ethnographic trip in a period of Central Europe history. sure, for many viewers, the film is far to be great. the mixture of magic and heroic facts, the details from an ordinary existence of a young man living in extraordinary context is a wise option. Agneszka Holland propose an interesting way - introduction of viewer in the universe of XVII- XVIII century using the traditions, myths, slices of every day life. so, it is not an easy choice to propose the right manner to tell his story.maybe only a viewer from the Central Europe understand this detail. a precise type of national hero, clever, seductive, good guy against the authorities, fighter for national ideal. ![]() Juraj Janosik is one of legendary heroes from the Central Europe. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |