Bulldogs and the Cherries

Parodies of “capitalist” movie genres, which had no tradition in domestic cinema, were a specific feature of Czechoslovak film. Juraj Herz’s sense of absurd humour and hyperbole had stood him in good stead many times and he made good use of it once again when he brought the mafia parody Buldoci a třešně (The Bulldogs and the Cherries) to cinemas in addition to the modern horror Upír z Feratu (The Vampire of Ferato). Herz made the film because he needed the money and he collaborated on the script with the pro-regime writer and screenwriter Ivan Gariš. It is based on the contrast between tough, larger-than-life Italian criminals and the peculiarly “local” Czech underworld. The protagonist of this whimsical tale is the mafia don, Carmello, who tried to swindle his boss and is now seeking a safe place to lie low in Prague, away from those who are gunning for his head. He sees the Central European capital as a safe haven, but the local Prague mafia sees to it that this urbane foreigner gets first-hand experience of the criminal practices that have emerged under real socialism… Like a number of other Czechoslovak parodies, The Bulldogs and the Cherries is not based on a good knowledge of American or Italian mafia films, but rather on the manner in which these movies were perceived. What results is a slightly bizarre film in the guise of a parody that benefits from absurd humour and an interesting cast. The Slovak actor Marián Labuda made good use of his comic talents in the role of Don Carmello. Jiří Kodet, František Němec, and František Filipovský also dressed up as mobsters for the movie. Because Jiří Hrzán died during filming, Miroslav Středa had to take over the role of the mafia hitman Fofo. The director Juraj Herz appears in the film in the role of a conductor, and he also gave a small part to his colleague Jiří Menzel, who plays a waiter.