Chata na prodej / Bear with Us
Parents sell an old cottage which they no longer use. Just before transferring the cottage to the new owner, the mother (Ivana Chýlková) decides to organize a last proper family reunion. However, the rest of the family doesn’t share much enthusiasm as these meetings are always quite challenging. Grandpa (Jan Kačer) is already absentminded. Father (David Vávra) rather hates these reunions. Son (Jan Strejcovský) is always half drunk and attempts to ironically comment the world around him, including breaking relationship with his girlfriend. Grandmother (Jana Synková) specializes on bothersome questions that make the others at least embarrassed. A mentally unbalanced daughter (Tereza Voříšková) comes to the cottage with her successful German boyfriend (Michael Pitthan) who is the only person to look forward to the trip, because he doesn’t know what to expect. The hope for an idyllic weekend alone in the woods will soon end, but the real adventure starts just before the morning when the family finds out that their grandfather is missing. Footprints lead to the forest...
I expected nothing at all, so maybe I'm slightly overstating now, but overall I agree with what I wrote. The Czechs are a nation of cottagers and a variety of “do-it-yourself” enthusiasts. The film can’t deny that. Some moments of the film were humorous and some were sad. The narration is a story of everyday life that everyone had to identify themselves in it. Absolutely believable situations written by life itself. The acting cast was flawless. I should focus more on the director Tomáš Pavlíček. From what I saw, together with scriptwriter Lucie Bokšteflová (both born in late 80s), they made an amazing work. I was simply astounded. Absolutely realistic situations, sentences, problems, the past is related to the present, and in the end nothing is resolved ... I appreciate an interesting casting (Chýlková and Vávra) and Jana Synková with her unforgettable high pitched voice stars after a quarter century in a quality film ... Acceptable footage, intelligent humor.
