Obsluhoval jsem anglického krále (2006)

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

Director:

Jirí Menzel

Writers:

Bohumil Hrabal (novel), Jirí Menzel

Stars:

Ivan Barnev, Oldrich Kaiser, Julia Jentsch

8 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ivan Barnev	...	Jan Díte, younger
Oldrich Kaiser	...	Jan Díte, older
Julia Jentsch	...	Líza
Marián Labuda	...	Walden
Milan Lasica	...	Professor
Zuzana Fialová	...	Marcela
Martin Huba	...	Skrivánek
Josef Abrhám	...	Hotelier Brandejs
Jirí Lábus	...	Hotel Boss
Rudolf Hrusínský	...	Tichota
Pavel Nový	...	General
Jaromír Dulava	...	Waiter Karel
Petra Hrebícková	...	Jaruska
Eva Kalcovská	...	Wanda
Sárka Petruzelová	...	Julinka

Storyline

Czechoslovakia, 1963. Jan Díte is released from prison after serving 15 years. He goes into semi exile in a deserted village near the German border. In flashbacks, he tells his story: he's a small, clever and quick-witted young man, stubbornly naïve, a vendor at a train station. Thanks to a patron, he becomes a waiter at upscale hotels and restaurants. We see him discover how the wealthy tick and how to please women. He strives to be a millionaire with his own hotel. Before the war, he meets Líza, a German woman in Prague. Is this his ticket to wealth or his undoing? Meanwhile, we see Jan putting a life together after prison: why was he sentenced, and who will he become?

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Plot Keywords:

hotel | waiter | wealth | boyfriend girlfriend relationship | historical event | 

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Taglines:

Ambition will get you anywhere

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexual content and nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Farbfilm-Verleih [de] Offficial site [cz]

Country:

Czech Republic Slovakia

Language:

Czech German French English Italian Korean

Release Date:

11 January 2007 (Czech Republic)

Also Known As:

Yo serví al rey de Inglaterra

Filming Locations:

Harrachov, Czech Republic

Box Office

Budget:

CZK 84,450,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$68,460 (USA) (29 August 2008)

Gross:

$617,228 (USA) (19 December 2008)

Company Credits

Production Co:

AQS, Barrandov Studios, Bioscop

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The actor who played Tichota, the innkeeper in the wheelchair, is Rudolf Hrusínský. His father, Rudolf Hrusínský - who died in 1994 - was a legendary Czech actor and a favorite of Director Jirí Menzel's.

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Goofs

In the Hotel Paris' restaurant scene a modern office building located across the street is clearly seen through the window.

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Quotes

Jan Díte, older: A person becomes most human, often against his own will, when he begins to founder, when he is derailed and deprived of order.

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Soundtracks

"Rapsodie krvaveho mesice"
(English title: "Bloody Moon Rhapsody")
Written by Jaroslav Jezek

User Reviews

"Visually beautiful and adventurous story..."

Czechoslovakian screenwriter, actor and director Jirí Menzel's sixteenth feature film is an adaptation of a novel from 1971 by Czech author and frequent collaborator of the director Bohumil Hrabal (1914-1997) which was shot on various locations in the Czech Republic and written by Jirí Menzel. It tells the story about Jan Díte, an old retired man who reminiscences the time when he as an ambitious young man encountered a successful business man who inspired him to become a millionaire and the time when he began working as a waiter at a high standard hotel in Prague for Skrivanek, the headwaiter who once served the king of England.

This brilliantly directed Czech, German, Hungarian and Slovakian co-production by Czech New Wave director Jirí Menzel, a character-driven journey through a cheerful and ambitious man's eventful life, depicts a multifaceted study of character about a very determined, articulate and good-hearted man who has numerous relationships with various women on his way towards fulfilling his dream. Shifting from past to present with an efficient narrative structure, this well-paced, imaginatively written and humorous drama, which functions well both as a period piece and a social-satire, creates a visually beautiful and adventurous story about life, destiny, dreams and love.

This moving comedy which Jirí Menzel got to direct after waiting ten years for the settlement over a rights dispute, is finely photographed by Czech cinematographer Jaromír Sofr, has some notable production design and some wonderful acting performances by Czech actor Ivan Barnev and German actress Julia Jentsch in a role which is significantly contrary from the one she played in German director Marc Rothemund's "Sophie Scholl-The Final Days" (2005). A romantic, charming and life-affirming film which gained, among other awards, the FIPRESCI Prize and was nominated for the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2007.