Milena (1991)

Prague, 1920. Milena's father wants her to follow in his footsteps and be one of the first female doctors in Czechoslovakia, but she is determined to be a writer. She elopes to Vienna with ... See full summary »

Director:

Véra Belmont

Writers:

Véra Belmont, Jana Cerna (novel),

Stars:

Valérie Kaprisky, Stacy Keach, Gudrun Landgrebe

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Valérie Kaprisky	...	Milena Jesenska
Stacy Keach	...	Jesenski
Gudrun Landgrebe	...	Olga
Nick Mancuso	...	Jaromir
Peter Gallagher	...	Pollak
Yves Jacques	...	Max Brod
Jacques Penot	...	Simon Foreman
Jeanne Marine	...	Lisa
Philip Anglim	...	Kafka
Clotilde Aras
Philippe Caroit	...	Von Vollmar
Claude Duneton
Christine Fersen
Maxime Leroux
Pierre Romans	...	Hermann Bahr

Storyline

Prague, 1920. Milena's father wants her to follow in his footsteps and be one of the first female doctors in Czechoslovakia, but she is determined to be a writer. She elopes to Vienna with the Jewish music critic Ernst Pollak, and starts a correspondence with Franz Kafka. She leaves Pollak and returns to Prague with her father, where she befriends and translates Kafka. As a journalist, Milena covers the 1923 Ruhr worker's strike and meets the communist architect Jaromir. They marry and have a daughter. Milena writes for a Marxist paper till her husband leaves for the Soviet Union. She then confronts the rise of Nazism in the years leading up to the Second World War, and ends up in a concentration camp.

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Plot Keywords:

kafka | doctor | concentration camp | architect | nazism | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Details

Country:

Canada France Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 January 1991 (France)

Also Known As:

Geliebte Milena

Filming Locations:

Bavaria Filmstudios, Geiselgasteig, Grünwald, Bavaria, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bavaria Film, Farena Films, France 3 Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

139 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

User Reviews

Beautiful picture, but not without flaws

If you are looking for a beautiful period movie, here it is. Milena is a headstrong woman who goes against her fathers wishes and marries a Jewish music critic. Costumes and scenery are fabulous, but one wonders why half the actors have thick accents and the other half don't. Milena's accent is so strong at times you can hardly understand her, yet her father's is as American as apple pie. The intricities are hard to understand, who everyone is and what their relationships are to each other and when a new character is introduced it takes a while before you fully understand who they are and why they are here. If you are a fan of Peter Gallagher (as we all should be) you will find him as dashing as ever, wonderfully handsome and gallant and terribly wicked as well. A very sexy scene in the first hour has him speaking French in the rain. You should not miss this one, as the movie is just too pretty not to, but don't expect to walk away fulfilled. Just try not to pay too much attention to it or your head will spin.