By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Vladimír Michálek
Starring: Stanislav Zindulka | Stella Zázvorková | Vlastimil Brodský
Original language title: Babí léto
Country: czech_republic
Year: 2003
Running time: 95
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0286476/combined
Bruce says: “How sad it is that 70% of our senior citizens are turning out to vote but so few by comparison ever attend the movies. Perhaps they are not turned on by 2 FAST 2 FURIOUS, the remake of THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, or HULK, all of which are designed to appeal to the 60% of all moviegoers who happen to be under 40. The aforementioned films grossed between $80-132 million each in the US in 2003.
“In AUTUMN SPRING directed by Vladimir Michalek from the Czech Republic, Fanda and Eda are two men who worked together for years and are now retirees. They view their twilight years with two distinct choices: despair and die; or find pleasure and enjoy. We’re not talking about big pleasures necessarily, just little ones to help fight the boredom. For example, one day they pose as opera impresarios who are looking to relocate from New York to the Czech Republic. They are wined and dined by greedy
relators as they gleefully tour mansions and estates which are available in the local upscale market. Needless to say, they did not choose ‘despair and die.’
“Meanwhile, Fanda’s wife Emilie stays at home obsessing over the inevitable deaths of herself and her husband as she parses their pensions into various pots such as their ‘burial fund.’ She finds her husband frivolous. Fanda and Emilie’s son does not take sides for he has a single goal: to get his parents into a old-age home so he and his new wife can appropriate the apartment and have bigger living quarters.
“Fanda and Eda continue to pursue their childlike fantasies, but events take a turn for the worse. In the end, Fanda and Emilie are forced to bridge their emotional and philosophical gaps. It is a learning process for a married couple who felt they were beyond learning and too old to change their ways.
“Ah, I forgot to mention that AUTUMN SPRING brought in $67,296 in its entire US release. Guess not many of those over 40 (40% of all filmgoers) realized that by patronizing films such as this they would also be voting for films that are age appropriate.
“This film is a gem. It is now available on DVD (95 minutes).” 5 cats