Summary
Writer-director Pavel Hobl had a success in 1963 with the children’s comedy Máte doma lva? (Do You Keep a Lion at Home?). The following year, he looked to follow that up with Za pět minut sedm (Five Minutes to Seven), another fantasy feature for young people, but this time tinged with a moralising lesson on society. The narrative tells of Tonda and Radek, two members of the Pioneers (the favoured term of the socialist regime for the “scouts”) who regularly take care of the town hall glockenspiel. They have the conviction that the instrument is inseparably connected to the life of the town. Confirmation of this is at hand the moment that Richard, the pompous, deceitful son of a general, starts doing them harm. The boys’ fanciful, imaginative interests and activities even attract a television crew… and at the decisive moment, the glockenspiel does its magic. Only Tonda and Radek, and their friend Alžběta, know how to solve the situation… Looking at the theme of this motion picture, it is possible to detect a slight resemblance to Vojtěch Jasný’s parable Až přijde kocour (That Cat..., 1963). In the casting of the adults, František Filipovský was given the part of the school director, while Miloš Nesvadba was selected to play the eager teacher.
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