Summary
This whodunnit sees the murder of signal box operator Marie (Carmen Mayerová) set off a chain of dramatic events at an open-cast brown coal mine. The suspects are mainly workers employed at the giant bucket-wheel excavator. The woman’s young lover Honza (Michal Pavlata) is provided with an alibi by his other lover, although he is unsure of his own innocence, thinking he may have caused Marie a fatal injury during a brawl. The possible perpetrators also include Franta who is found in possession of the victim’s savings book, and Tony whose financial fortunes have suddenly improved in an inexplicable manner. Only a painstaking reconstruction of the crime conducted by police detectives under the leadership of a public security force (the term used to describe the “police” during the socialist era) captain, played by Vladimír Ráž, leads to the unmasking of the real culprit… Zlá noc (Evil Night) was inspired by the novel Minuta smrti (Minute of Death). Film publicist Zdenek Zaoral contributed to the script of the crime drama. It was shot by seasoned director Václav Matějka in 1973.
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