Zdeněk Svěrák

From A Book of Quotations

Zdeněk Svěrák (1936) has been the Czech Republic's most famous screenwriter since the 1970s. He is also an accomplished actor, performing many of the leading roles in his self-written comedies. These are as recognizable for their own unique brand of humour as Billy Wilder's or Woody Allen's humour is exclusively their own.

Svěrák's arguably first famous comedy was Jáchyme, hoď ho do stroje! (Joachim, Put It in the Machine!, 1974). It was followed by Svěrák's first true classic, 1976's Marečku, podejte mi pero! (Hand Me the Pen, Mark!), an adult education parody. The movie was co-written by Svěrák and his lifelong collaborator Ladislav Smoljak, and starred the two in supporting roles. Many of the phrases from the movie have entered the popular vocabulary in both the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and the movie is especially popular among teachers and students of all ages – a timeless classic from the school millieu. Among other 1970s and early 1980s comedies, Vrchní, prchni! (Run, Waiter, Run!, 1980) has enjoyed endless re-runs on Czech and Slovak TV stations.

Svěrák's first international smash hit came in 1985 with Vesničko má středisková (My Sweet Little Village). Svěrák wrote the movie and starred in a supporting role. The comedy was directed by Jiří Menzel who had previously won an Oscar in 1967 for Closely Watched Trains. My Sweet Little Village was rewarded with an Oscar nomination.

Another Oscar nomination followed in 1991 for Obecní škola (The Elementary School). Again set in the school environment (Zdeněk Svěrák started out as a professional teacher), it depicted the atmosphere of a small-town school in post-World War II Czechoslovakia. Zdeněk Svěrák played one of the leading roles in this one, and for the first time, one of his movies was directed by his son, Jan Svěrák.

Zdeněk Svěrák (teamed with his son as director) finally won the Foreign Language Film Oscar for the acclaimed international hit Kolja (Kolya, 1996), taking place against the backdrop of the collapse of the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe in 1989. In this movie, Zdeněk Svěrák moved into the sole leading role. One might say he wrote the leading character for himself and to his own liking.

In 2001, the father and son attempted to shoot a blockbuster movie in the Hollywood style, Tmavomodrý svět (Dark-Blue World). A departure from the usual tone of Zdeněk Svěrák comedies, the sombre World War II movie about Czech-born British Royal Air Force pilots was not greeted appreciatevely by everyone, even though it was a commercial success, primarily in the Czech Republic. It was also the most expensive Czech movie of all time.

A long creative gap for Zdeněk Svěrák followed, closed in 2007 with another Zdeněk & Jan Svěrák comedy in the traditional vein, Vratné lahve (Empties / Returnable Bottles). The father had to re-write the movie's screenplay four times before the son agreed to direct the film. Similar to Kolya, and unlike Dark-Blue World, their most recent comedy once again stars Zdeněk Svěrák in the leading role, much reminiscent of the beloved leading character of the profligate bookstore manager-turned-waiter in the 1980 comedy Run, Waiter, Run. The title song of both Run, Waiter, Run and Empties is performed by the same Czech singer and songwriter, Jaroslav Uhlíř. Empties was a commercial hit in the Czech Republic and generally met with a warm welcome. Nevertheless, the Czech candidate for the Academy Award for 2007 became none other than Jiří Menzel for Obsluhoval jsem anglického krále (I Served the King of England); Menzel's movie ultimately failed to win an Oscar nomination.

Zdeněk Svěrák and his collaborator Ladislav Smoljak are also famous for having created the fictional personality of a Czech genius, Jára Cimrman. They shot comedies and performed theatrical plays supposedly depicting the genius's biography. The fictitious person became so popular among Czechs that when the voting for The Greatest Czech of all time was organized in 2005, Cimrman came in first, ahead of all real famous Czech politicians, artists, or athletes of the past. The Czech Television had to disqualify Cimrman from the contest, saying that although he has undoubtedly been presented as a great genius in Czech art, he was nonetheless not a real person. Zdeněk Svěrák himself came in 25th on the list of the greatest Czechs of all time, closely on the heels of the Nobel Prize-winning poet Jaroslav Seifert and ahead of the NHL star Jaromír Jágr. Ladislav Smoljak finished 79th.

5-Minute Reviews

The following Zdeněk Svěrák movies are discussed in 5-minute reviews on this site:

Additional Resources