Učiteľka

Der Theaterklub Křeč Bratislava präsentiert: ein didaktisches und geschichtlich orientiertes Theaterspiel. Struktur: Der stumme Bobeš, ganz im Sinne der höhnischen Anspielung auf ein bekanntes tschechisches Kinderbuch (und so war es auch!). Schauspielerische Leistungen: Achtung, ich habe jetzt eine Rede und nehme dazu meine Stellung ein. Methode: vereinfachen, dreimal wiederholen, auf die Tafel aufschreiben. Diesen Versuch eines Gewissensdramas können Sie meine Herren gerne schenken. Ein neuer Tiefpunkt. #kviff2016 (05.07.2016)

Ein gutes totalitäres Drama mit einem leicht zynischen Ton und der kühlen Botschaft "sie sind noch immer unter uns“. Zuzana Mauréry spielt ausgezeichnet und von der übrigen Besetzung glänzt am meisten der Ringer als "Volksheld“. Der Film ist gut geschrieben, Hřebejk führt bei zarten, überwiegend negativen Charakter-Reibungsmomenten zwischen den Protagonisten die Regie auf geschickte Weise. Die Inszenierung wirkt aber ein bisschen "TV-mäßig“ und öffnet die Wunden aus der Vergangenheit nicht so stark. Im Vergleich zu anderen charakterlosen Schweinereien, die damals passierten, ist diese Geschichte eher banal. (16.10.2020)

We have to help each other in a Czechoslovakian way. Although I can't shake the feeling that it would work better on the stage, I don't regret the time invested. And I wouldn't regret even more if the Jarchovský/Hřebejk duo once had been backed by a clear storyline. It is not directed as a story from beginning to end, but there are rather individual separate "bachelor's" segments, where every twenty minutes are devoted to one family and then the focus is on another one, without ever returning to the previous ones. It is also a pity that the children are sidelined after a while. The reason why it works so well in spite of the above is that the situation and its solution from the point of view of individual families is played out interestingly, that what Jarchovský spoils in terms of plot, is made up with dialogs and the fact that the performances of unknown cast is amazing. In other words, that is the most sad is the opportunity of the final part was completely wasted. (15.12.2016)

The Teacher is definitely one of the best films from Czech production (or rather from Czech-Slovak co-production) in 2016. It benefits in particular from the engaging and poignant theme of bullying and exploitation during the communist regime, all set in a school environment that lends itself well to projecting issues of relationships for both children and adults. Another pillar of success was the casting of Zuzana Mauréry in the lead role of teacher Drazděchová, who, as some users have suggested, stands up to comparison with Harry Potter's Dolores Umbridge (the Karlovy Vary award for Best Actress was well deserved in my opinion, although I'm not familiar with the competition). The various interludes between the parents' meeting at the school and what preceded it worked brilliantly, and from the start I was anxiously awaiting the revelation of the "terrible event" for which this meeting was actually held. And the final scene, with the sound of the unmistakable click of heels, got me. All in all, a very well made, written and acted film, which more than once aroused in me a considerable wave of anger and indignation, and made me think about how I would behave in a similar situation. (13.08.2016)

I’m really glad that Jan Hřebejk still has it in him, but then I truly don’t get why the quality of his recent movies is faltering as much as it is. Once, I get an unexpectedly good movie, other times I get the feeling like I’m watching someone else’s work, even if the directing and the script are done by the same people. However, I’ll stop complaining since I’d love to gush about the great idea of shooting this movie with almost exclusively Slovakian actors. Zuzana Mauréry’s character of the teacher was absolutely perfectly repulsive and the era the story is set in only adds to the repulsiveness. Petr Bebjak, on the other hand, plays a completely unspectacular character, but once he starts talking about his wife, you can tell that he’s given it his all. In the first half, I was getting used to the story, but the second half of the movie is so full of emotions that it was hard to banish them after the movie ended. It was a great movie. (16.11.2017)