Surviving Life (Theory and Practice)

(Přežít svůj život [teorie a praxe])

Czech Republic/Slovakia 2010. Director: Jan Ĺ vankmajer
Cast: Václav Helšus, Klára Issová, Zuzana Krónerová, Daniela Bakerová, Emília Doseková

“This film is going to be a comedy that nobody is going to laugh at,” announces Jan Švankmajer’s latest feature, in which the master animator embarks on an eye-popping new cut-out-and-collage direction (mixed with live action) and crafts one of his most entertaining and accessible films yet. Švankmajer’s psychoanalytical yarn concerns middle-aged, married Evžen, who enters therapy in order to deal with an obsession: he’s fallen heavily for a beautiful young woman he keeps encountering in his dreams. In a twist, Evžen isn’t seeking help to rid himself of these dreams; rather, he wants to ensure he keeps having them! “Expounding on (and cheekily refuting) Freudian and Jungian dream logic while dazzling the eye with animation that falls somewhere between South Park. Yellow Submarine. and Terry Gilliam’s work for the Pythons, this manages to be Švankmajer’s most poignant and fully-formed feature to date. It retains all of his hallmarks, from the grotesque close-up photography to his fixations with food and sex. Its masterstroke, though, is the zestfully ironic way it harnesses the skewed workings of the subconscious” (David Jenkins, Time Out ). “An unmissable pleasure. Švankmajer is at the height of his filmmaking powers as director, artistic director, and storyteller here” (Deborah Young, Hollywood Reporter ). Colour, 35mm, in Czech with English subtitles. 109 mins.

"The film interestingly and subversively takes its stand on the idea that dreams are the real thing; waking life is an exotic, strange tissue of unreal diversions."

"It harnesses the skewed workings of the subconscious, confirming Svankmajer as a master filmmaker and knocking films like Inception and The Matrix into a cocked hat."

"The Czech satirist Svankmajer is in good form with his latest surreal combination of live action and animation."