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5.1/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 5.1/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Pepina Rejholcová remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
Honestly, you probably already know if you’re the type of person who digs 1930s Czech cinema. If you enjoy movies that feel like a stage play where everyone is shouting at once, you’ll love it. If you’re looking for a smooth, modern pace, you are going to hate every single minute of this.
It’s loud. There is so much shouting in this movie. Characters just stand in doorways and project their voices like they’re trying to reach the back row of a theater that doesn't exist anymore.
The whole thing feels like a neighborhood argument that somehow got filmed. You’ve got people popping in and out of frames, and the blocking is just absolute chaos.
There is this one moment with the laundry hanging out that just goes on forever. It’s completely unnecessary, but it gives you a second to breathe before someone starts yelling about a lost piece of jewelry or a misunderstood comment again.
It reminds me a bit of the frantic energy in The Girl with the Hat Box, though that one had a bit more focus. This one just kind of wanders around, which is either charming or exhausting depending on your mood.
Watching these older films, you start to notice the weird little things. Like how a prop sits on a table for three scenes and then vanishes into thin air. Did someone steal it? Did the director just get bored of it? We’ll never know.
It’s not perfect. It’s barely even polished. But there’s a pulse to it that you don't find in modern, computer-smoothed stuff. It feels like a real, slightly messy document of people just trying to get through the day.
Don't go in expecting a masterpiece. Go in expecting a neighborhood shouting match. You might find it funny, or you might just want to put on some headphones. Either way, it’s an experience. 🎭
