Kolya
Film poster
Directed byJan Svěrák
Written byZdeněk Svěrák
Produced byEric Abraham
Jan Svěrák
StarringZdeněk Svěrák
Andrey Khalimon
Libuše Šafránková
CinematographyVladimír Smutný
Edited byAlois Fišárek
Music byOndřej Soukup
Production
companies
Biograf Jan Svěrák
Pandora Cinema
Česká Televize
CinemArt
Portobello Pictures
Space Films
Distributed bySpace Films
Release date
  • 15 May 1996 (1996-05-15) (Czech Republic)
Running time
111 minutes (original)
105 minutes (US version)
CountryCzech Republic
LanguagesCzech, Slovak and Russian
BudgetCZK 28 million[1]
(app. $1 million)
Box office$7.7 million[2]

Kolya (Czech: Kolja) is a 1996 Czech drama film about a man whose life is reshaped in an unexpected way. The film was directed by Jan Svěrák and stars his father, Zdeněk Svěrák, who also wrote the script from a story by Pavel Taussig.[3] Kolya earned critical acclaim and won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film.[4]

Plot

The film begins in 1988 in Soviet-occupied Czechoslovakia. František Louka, a middle-aged man dedicated to bachelorhood and the pursuit of women, is a concert cellist struggling to eke out a living by playing funerals at the Prague crematoriums. He has lost his previous job at the Czech Philharmonic, having been blacklisted as "politically unreliable" by the authorities. A friend offers him a chance to earn a great deal of money through a sham marriage to a Russian woman to enable her to stay in Czechoslovakia. The woman then uses her new citizenship to emigrate to West Germany, where her boyfriend lives.

Due to a concurrence of circumstances, she has to leave behind her 5-year-old son, Kolya, for the disgruntled Czech musician to look after. At first Louka and Kolya have communication difficulties, as they don't speak each other's languages and the many false friend words that exist in Czech and Russian add to the confusion. Gradually, though, a bond forms between Louka and Kolya. The child suffers from suspected meningitis and has to be placed on a course of carefully monitored antibiotics. Louka is threatened with imprisonment for his suspect marriage and the child may be placed in a Soviet children's home. The Velvet Revolution intervenes though, and Kolya is reunited with his mother. Louka and Kolya say their goodbyes.

Louka returns to the Czech Philharmonic and plays Má Vlast with the orchestra under the conductor Rafael Kubelík at the Old Town Square in 1990, while his pregnant girlfriend Klára watches from the crowd.

Cast

Home media

The film was released on DVD and VHS on July 2, 2002.[5]

Reception

The film gained positive reviews.[6][7][8][9] It received Honorable Mention at 53rd Venice International Film Festival. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 96% based on 25 reviews, with an average score of 7.90/10.[10]

Box office

In the Czech Republic, the movie's country of origin, over 1.34 million visitors made the movie one of the most successful movies ever. In Germany more than 624,000 tickets were sold for the film.[11]

The film was successful on a limited release in the United States[12] from 24 January 1997 and had taken about $5.73 million by 11 July that year after an opening weekend gross on three screens of $37,795.[13]

Awards

See also

References

  1. ↑ Česká televize: Kolja – Co možná nevíte
  2. ↑ worldwideboxoffice: Kolya
  3. ↑ Thomas, Kevin (1997-01-24). "Father and Son Team Up in 'Kolya'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-03.
  4. ↑ "The 69th Academy Awards (1997) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  5. ↑ "News". hive4media.com. Archived from the original on July 3, 2002. Retrieved September 29, 2019.
  6. ↑ Maslin, Janet (1997-01-24). "What a Difference a Boy Makes". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-06-03.
  7. ↑ "Kolya". Chicago Sun Times. 1997-01-27. Archived from the original on 2007-04-01. Retrieved 2012-06-03.
  8. ↑ Guthmann, Edward (1997-09-12). "FILM REVIEW – Charming 'Kolya' Has Magic Touch". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2012-06-03.
  9. ↑ Thomas, Kevin (1997-01-24). "A Heart-Tugger With a Czech Twist". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-03.
  10. ↑ "Kolya - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. 1996-01-24. Retrieved 2023-05-20.
  11. ↑ Kolya: Admissions. LUMIERE – Database on admissions of films released in Europe. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  12. ↑ King, Susan (1997-01-28). "Jerry Maguire Ahead of Pack—Barely". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-03.
  13. ↑ Kolya: Box Office, IMDB, Undated.Retrieved 24 January 2016.
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