Synopsis
Distinguished Czech documentarist Jana Boková, who lives in Argentina, decided for her latest film to find out exactly what the word "exile" means. Her first stop is Prague, where after a period of 40 years, she meets up with a friend, the philosopher Václav Belohradský. Their joint recollections of leaving Prague, at that time occupied by forces of Soviet Union, are deftly woven into high-quality archive footage. She also conducts a frank interview in Prague with the lightly intoxicated Vlasta Trešnák, who remembers his torture during the endless interrogations by the state secret police and the need to choose between prison and emigration. This highly personal film examines the lives of several Czech emigrants, including the director herself, considers the various aspects of emigration and reaches the conclusion that, once a person has been uprooted, he can never cultivate his native roots again.
"In Paris Věra Linhartová once wrote an essay about the irresolvable nature of emigration. Once you're uprooted you can never take root again. That's true for me too. In recent years, something has been changing though. It's a different generation, people who didn't have to make tough decisions in 1968. The prejudice is disappearing and I decided to come back to Prague through film. Moreover, Prague is impenetrable and exotic to me because I was very young when I left. But the Prague part of the trilogy is not about me. I'm interested in people like Petr Král, people who return after years in emigration. Prague will be viewed from a greater distance, from somewhere halfway to a return."
"In Paris Věra Linhartová once wrote an essay about the irresolvable nature of emigration. Once you're uprooted you can never take root again. That's true for me too. In recent years, something has been changing though. It's a different generation, people who didn't have to make tough decisions in 1968. The prejudice is disappearing and I decided to come back to Prague through film. Moreover, Prague is impenetrable and exotic to me because I was very young when I left. But the Prague part of the trilogy is not about me. I'm interested in people like Petr Král, people who return after years in emigration. Prague will be viewed from a greater distance, from somewhere halfway to a return."
Gallery
