Lost Years

Vladimír Čech may have been an expert crafter of crime stories, but it is this socially critical 1965 piece that serves as perhaps his most significant filmic accomplishment. Despite not attaining the provocative nature of the book on which it is based – 1955’s Páteř (Backbone) by Ladislav Bublík – it nonetheless testifies to the loosening political climate of mid-1960s Czechoslovakia. The story is told in flashback by Karel (Jaroslav Vízner), who recalls the events of the previous months at the modest burial of his fellow builder colleague Bedřich (František Peterka). In 1953, on an official day of mourning for the death of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, viewers are exposed to the story of one simple man, liquidated by the communist regime. Bedřich has been subject to ongoing political investigations and, unwilling to admit to trumped-up charges of (Nazi-era) collaboration, he commits suicide. The film benefits from convincing performances, including a terrific turn from Oldřich Nový as former barber Carbol.