Obsluhoval jsem anglického krále (2006)

Director:

Jirí Menzel

Writers:

Bohumil Hrabal (novel)
Jirí Menzel (writer)

Release Date:

11 January 2007 (Czech Republic)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance | War

Plot:

A look at the glamorous life at an old-world Prague hotel.

Plot Keywords:

Waiter | Boyfriend Girlfriend Relationship | 1930s | Window Dresser | Nazi

Awards:

8 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Ivan Barnev	...	Jan Díte, younger
Oldrich Kaiser	...	Jan Díte, older
Julia Jentsch	...	Líza
Martin Huba	...	Skrivánek
Marián Labuda	...	Walden
Milan Lasica	...	Professor
Josef Abrhám	...	Hotelier Brandejs
Jirí Lábus	...	Hotel Boss
Jaromír Dulava	...	Waiter Karel
Pavel Nový	...	General
István Szabó	...	Stock Marketeer
Tonya Graves	...	Abyssinian Emperor
Rudolf Hrusínský	...	Tichota
Petr Ctvrtnícek	...	Stockbroker
Jirí Sesták	...	Waiter

Also Known As:

I Served the King of England (International: English title)
Obsluhoval som anglického krála (Slovakia)

MPAA:

Rated R for sexual content and nudity.

Runtime:

Czech Republic:120 min

Country:

Czech Republic | Slovakia

Language:

Czech | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Slovakia:12 | Czech Republic:12 | Netherlands:12 | South Korea:18 | USA:R | Hong Kong:IIB | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Finland:K-13

Filming Locations:

Harrachov, Czech Republic

Company:

AQS

Trivia:

Czech Republic's Official Submission to the Best Foreign Language Film Category of the 80th Annual Academy Awards (2008).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the montage of Jan making love to Lise, stock footage is shown of SS men marching through the streets of Prague. The same footage is later reused by flipping the film from left to right, which is evident by the Nazi armbands moving from their left arms to their right arms and swastikas reversing direction.

Soundtrack:

Rapsodie krvaveho mesice

Beautiful and sweet film

While filming a novel is always difficult.. I think this film captures the spirit of the novel.. one man' life as he succeeds and fails and survives and never seems to be really touched by the world events happening around him (the story starts in 1920's and ends mid-1960's) The actors are perfectly cast, especially the two actors playing Jan Dite. The cinematography is wonderful, as is the music. I have read the novel and I live in the Czech Republic, so I have familiarity with both the story and the culture, but I think the story is universal enough for all audiences to enjoy this film.

This is one of the biggest budget Czech films ever and you can see ALL of the money on the screen, costumes, sets and locations (including the beautiful Hotel Parziz in Prague, which is unchanged from when it was built!)

highly recommend this film to anyone who loves melancholy, sweet stories with a bit of political commentary thrown in for good measure....