Why so much hype?

Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

Really Surprised!

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The film Cosy Dens focuses on three families living in Czechoslovakia during the Prague Spring, a time when the country was much less influenced by Communism than it had been before or after. However, despite the political backdrop, the threat of Communism and the fact that this more liberal society is only temporary does not play a major role in the narrative. The primary events of the film follow typical families of the period without dwelling too much on Czech society as a whole. The movie shares similarities to Christmas movies in American cinema. In visual style the movie looks a lot like A Christmas Story. Both films make use of an idealized looking past where everything has this gold-tinted lighting and everyone wears pristine versions of the clothes that existed at the time. In contrast to this romanticized version of the past, there is the more chaotic element of family drama. This is common in holiday movies and uses the cynical subversion of Christmas being the "happiest time of the year" to derive much of the humor. The film shows Michal's sister receiving a cross bow which is similar to the BB gun in A Christmas Story, and the overall demeanor of Michal's father is similar the "The Old Man" in that they both act like they are the all-knowing patriarchs of the their family when in fact they are both bumbling idiots in actual practice. There's also an interesting moment that parallels Home Alone where a character lights the top of his head of fire. This may or may not have been a deliberate reference but it is a very specific thing that happens in both films and would be an odd coincidence if it was not intentional. Cosy Dens is a slice of life movie, so there is very little plot. The teenage character of Michal has a crush on his neighbor Jindriska, who begins dating Elien. Michal's infatuation drives many of his actions that propel the story. Jindriska and Michal's parents represent the opposing ideologies of the Prague Spring. Mr. Kraus (Jindriska's father) is strongly opposed to the Communists, while Mr. Sebek (Michal's father) is a Communist soldier. As neighbors Kraus and Sebek often interact with each other, but resent each other because of their opposing ideologies and differing personalities. This dynamic represent something interesting about Cosy Dens. Many aspects of the movie work as both a simple coming of age story and as a microcosm for Czech politics at the time. For example, the character of Elien is a mod that is interested in the British subcultures that were emerging at this time. Within the movie's plot he is a romantic rival to Michal, and in the larger context of Czech society he represents the influx of Western democratic ideas and culture that define the Prague Spring. The idea behind subcultures whether mod, hippie, or any other is the rejection of mainstream culture and the society it represents. This glorification of individuality is in stark contrast to the ideas of societal unity that Communist like Sabek believe. Elien even showed American films, directly spreading that culture to the people in his community. Sabek's Communist allegiance is manifested in his glorification of new technology created by other Communists such as the "unbreakable" plastic cups, and much like the idea of Soviet Communism, the notion that the cups are unbreakable does not hold up to scrutiny. The death of Kraus's wife somewhat foreshadows and parallels the Russian invasion in that many of the things he cares about, his wife and his ideology, are not going to be a comfort to him forever, and in fact he is the one that is most upset when the invasion occurs. Outside of relationships that represent the political atmosphere of the time, there are also typical family relationships that do not seem to represent anything else. The relationship between Michal and his father is strained because they have different interest. Michal is disinterested in his father political obsessions and Mr. Sebek thinks his son's interests are going to turn him into a degenerate. Similarly, Jindriska's father thinks she is a failure because she doesn't want to practice playing the piano and doesn't share his passion for having all the skills he takes so much pride in, while she shares a closer relationship in her more accepting mother. Sebek's relationship with his brother is competitive, almost to an unhealthy level, and he goes out of his way to impress him. These interactions seem to represent a fairly realistic family dynamic that is influenced by a generation gap and the stress of entertaining a large group of people over the holidays. The film culminates in the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, ending the Prague Spring, but, except for Mr. Kraus's strong anti-Communist patriotism, the movie has very little to do with politics directly, especially if the viewer unfamiliar with the events. First and foremost it is a movie about family relationships. This makes the vast majority of the movie very accessible and watchable for everyone. However, the ending does not seem like an appropriate conclusion to this mostly universal story. It is very specifically about the end of the Prague Spring. The entire movie does deal with the Prague Spring, but it is handled in a much more subtle way, using characters to represent the political tension. The invasion was a national event, whereas the rest of the movie is more personal and focused entirely on the lives of a few people. Even when these people have ideologies that are nationally based (anti/pro-Communism,) they express these ideas in the way they interact with their family and friends. The invasion is impersonal and largely irrelevant to everything that happens up until that point. It would be more satisfying if there was a conclusion that only effected the characters and the world that had been shown up until that point.

I really enjoyed watching this movie. I found this gem by accident and I'm surprised that it hasn't found it's way to a major audience here in Germany although quite a few Czech movies run on public television. The movie is funny and witty but at times also sad and deadly serious. Like many other Czech movies the story is made up of small parts that fit together as a whole picture. There's the stubborn army officer a convinced communist and his family, there's the war hero that strongly opposes the communist regime a choleric and his family and the single teacher and her son who try to find a new man for the family and there are the teenagers of those families that don't really care about politics or what their parents think is important. Those are the main characters that form a whole picture of life in Czechoslovakia during the Prague spring in 1968. The stories switch at easy from funny to hilarious to sad and back. I recommend this movie to everyone to watch. It is certainly worth the time. Other reviews state that you have to be Czech to fully understand everything. Well, I could relate to the characters as well though I might have missed a cultural reference or two.

In last few days I've made my own home festival of Czech movies. Today in cue was Hrebejk's "Pelisky". Some times ago I've watched his Musime Si Pomahat so I expect great film. But today's movie touched me very deep, reminding some moments from my life. I was born in 1952 so in 1968 I was in same age as young characters of the movie. In august I was on my holidays in the little town in south Poland where my granny lived - just about 150 km from the border of Czechoslovakia. For the rest of my life I will remember the sound of the soviet warplanes heard 20/21 August. I've been watching this movie with the tears in my eyes. I knew all the songs from the CSR big-beat groups because in 1967/68 I've everyday listen the Stanice Hviezda from Ostrava - 80 km from my home town. Really, really great movie. Understandable not only for the Czech & Slovak people.

Prague in 1968 prior to the Soviet invasion. The setting is ideal for a political drama, but Czech artists prefer to make a comedy with political background. The action takes place in a house, where families from different political camps (pro-communist vs. anti-communist) live together. The story is told in such a warm, witty and funny way that it immediately resembles the golden years of Czech movie industry in the 70's and 80's. This movie was a tremendous hit on the local Czech market, unfortunately it has never reached my country (Poland). I've had a chance to see it only on the Warsaw Film Festival. It's sad but all the time distributors prefer to show s****y Hollywood cheesy-style romances or action packs, instead real-value movies. Definitely one of the movies of 1999 IMHO. The same goes for other Czech movie - "Return of the Idiot" (Navrat Idiota) - watch out for Czechs, they are on the right track again.