Divided We Fall

A FILM BY Jan Hrebejk

An entertaining and provocative tale of ordinary people who suddenly find themselves heroes.
- Erica Abeel, FILM JOURNAL INTERNATIONAL
Poignant, humanistic and irresistibly comic.""""
- Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
Confronts an incendiary topic head-on with grace, style, compassion and exquisitely practical wit.""""
- Eddie Cockrell, Variety
Whether they act with cowardice or courage, the characters are invariably complex.""""
- Rita Kempley, Washington Post

Synopsis

Divided We Fall is set in a small Czech town occupied by German forces during the last years of the Second World War. Josef and Marie C'Zek are a childless couple trying to lead a normal life in the face of Josef's sterility and the chaos of war that surrounds them. One night, Josef has a chance encounter with David Weiner, the Jewish son of his former employer whose family has long since been deported from their town. David is the only surviving member of his family and has recently escaped from a concentration camp. After brief deliberation, Josef decides to give David refuge in his home. To distract the attention of the German authorities and to protect their neighbours from possible reprisals, Josef takes a job with Horst Prohazka, a Nazi collaborator and former colleague and becomes more and more entangled with the representatives of arbitrary rule. To make matters worse, Horst has a romantic interest in Marie and often visits the couple unannounced.

Theatrical Release Date

Original Languages: Czech, German
Genre: Comedy, Drama, World Cinema
Running Time: 123 min.
Year: 2000

Credits

CAST
Anna Siskova
Bolek Polivka
DIRECTED BY
Jan Hrebejk

PHOTOS