Bolek & Lolek, Vol. 1

Starring:Bolek & Lolek
Studio: Facets Video
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

A daring comedy of ethics, Divided We Fall takes place during World War II in a small, Nazi-occupied town in Czechoslovakia. Josef and Maria, a childless couple, have withdrawn further and further from reality even as the war circles closer to their eerily quiet town. Josef's decision to sleep through a war he doesn't want to acknowledge is soon tested when the Jewish son of his former employer arrives in the middle of the night seeking refuge. David, the sole survivor from his family, escaped from a concentration camp in Poland and managed to return to the only place he knows in search of help. As they harbor David in their pantry over the next three years, Josef and Maria discover the depth of their resolve, forced to play the role of seeming collaborators in order to save themselves and David. Reminiscent more of Yugoslav filmmaker Emir Kustirica's devastating brand of black humor (Underground, Time of the Gypsies) than the saccharine Life Is Beautiful, to which it has been repeatedly compared, Divided We Fall achieves quite a lot, capturing the pervasive suspicion and betrayal of World War II through the unexpected guise of situation comedy. --Fionn Meade

Customer Reviews:

Rebirth and Resurrection.......2007-02-26

I have never seen a Czech film I didn't like. This one is top drawer. A childless couple hide a Jew during WW II and the compelling consequences. The ending is poetically just and symbolic. A must-see.

Turning your back on a people, be they Jews, Czechs (as Britain & France did), or any people, only delays evil turning on you........2006-09-05

"Throughout time, whenever tyrants arose and preached a mixture of world domination and complete intolerance for most other human beings, their first targets were often a small group of people noted for giving the world monotheism, the bible and a set of basic laws that have been followed for thousands of years." "[T]yrannical regimes always seem to have one common link---their deep hatred for Jews." The words are from a Warren Kozak opinion piece (which appeared in the New York Sun August 21, 2006). It's hardly a new idea, of course, yet most of the world still seems disinclined to acknowledge it. Blatant anti-Semitism is thus not just something for Jews to worry about. All folks who champion freedom thus, in effect, ought see themselves as part Jewish themselves: either you stand with the persecuted or you are just putting off the day when you might just as likely be faced with similar persecution. That's the central point of "Divided We Fall"---"the true and bittersweet story of a Czechoslovakian couple whose village has been taken over by Nazis during World War II." When a Jewish friend escapes from German confinement and makes his way back to their common neighborhood, the couple has a choice to make. "I lived here all my life," says the man on the run in the film, "so I thought maybe someone here might help me." But what makes this film unique is the notion that non-Jews really need to wed Jews (metaphorically) to stand up against anti-Semitism; for, without a union of some sorts, they are looking for trouble to come their way eventually. How the film presents this point is most unusual, but I won't get into specifics here, not wishing to give away crucial plot details. Suffice it say that the film exaggerates the above to make its point very clearly and does so with much style and accomplishment. That it's a Czech-made story only reinforces the idea that if you sacrifice a people (as Britain & France did) it's only going to temporarily put off the day of your own reckoning with the evil at hand. Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film of 2000 this picture is well worth watching. (06Aug) Cheers!

Heart felt.......2006-03-17

I initally rented the film online. Fell in love with the complex human interactions to survive during WW2, and to still do what is right. The ending has a twist to it that I did not expect. I liked this one so much that I purchased my own copy. Do not let the fear of English subtitals get in your way of a great movie.

United We Stand.......2006-03-09

This film is one of the best of all time, and certainly one of the best kept secrets among film buffs. It deals with a childless Czech family during the German occupation of World War II who at great personal risk hide the son of their former Jewish employer. What develops is a story that mirrors the Gospel account of the conception and birth of Jesus, but is presented as entirely plausible, despite the delightful slapstick. Not even the collaborators and turncoats are portrayed without compassion, though their foibles (as well as those of our heroes) are gently mocked in a truly universal and life affirming way. This is magical realism with an eastern European flavor.

Together We Stand.......2005-09-08

There has been a spate of fin de siecle films that have sought to undermine the general gloom and doom spectre of the Nazi regime. To take any other than the orthodox view is courageous and especially edifying as the films emanate from the occupied locales of suffering. 'Underground's' carnival flavour was festive at times, though I found the misogyny disturbing even accepting the plausibility of the plot. 'Life Is Beautiful', was really a supreme one-liner. But Jan Hrebjk's,'Divided We Fall' I'd nominate as the best of the bunch, for its farcical ferocity. The Czech town is occupied by Nazi invaders and its power structures, class and race, are inverted. The script is tight, tingling with one-liners, and given embodiment by a brilliant ensemble of lead characters. The reluctant hero, Joseph (the droll Bolek Poliuka)who'd rather have slept the duration of the war in hope that life would return to normal, is thrust to defend his Jewish neighbour. His valour, therefore, is dragged from him. Honour, allegiance, morality - all community values are deeply questioned, and definitively framed by their former friend, now a Nazi collaborator, who, in praise of Hitler has adopted the fuhrer's hairstyle down to the moustache. He's an ingratiating fellow who leeches after Joseph's wife. So many swift and sudden shifts of affiliation occur. The German Commandant, more than any Czech, is totally undone by the loss of three successive sons to the slaughter, and his wife to the asylum. Never has a title been more apt. This moves with the speed of Fawlty Towers and in the gangling Poliuka draws a touchingly real story brimming with comic insights and naive, good intent. I can't recall a film since,'Jesus of Montreal' that so exquisitely incorporates a Christian tale. Here, the 'miraculously' conceived infant, promotes a vision of resurrection in 'father', Joseph of the reunited family of the Commandant. Even during this epiphany,Hrebjk mischieviously has the infant peeing in his dad. The Germans sit at a table midst a pile of rubble. It's a climactic guesture of reconciliation and forgiveness.

Average customer rating:

Dont get it unless you understand Polish
Warning - No English Subtitles
Fantastic film about an old Polish legend

The Old Fairy Tale (Stara Basn)
Starring: Bolek & Lolek in the Wild West
Manufacturer: www.mge.tv
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

Animation | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

Adventure | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Animation | Genres | DVD | Video

( O ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Action & Adventure | Independently Distributed | Stores | DVD | Video

Independently Distributed | Indie & Art House | Stores | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Colonel Wolodyjowski (ES)
Pan Tadeusz

ASIN: B0009WMBRY
Release Date: 2004-04-01

Product Description

Ninth Century Europe, when different Slavic tribes lived on the land that later becomes Poland, at a time when each tribe worshipped it's own, separate god. A cruel prince, Popiel...the original Polish folk tale.

Customer Reviews:

Dont get it unless you understand Polish.......2007-05-31

It looks like a cool movie but I'm an idiot, didn't notice it had no subtitles, it's kind of pointless trying to watch it. I'm adventurous and multi cultural and all that but I'm not about to sit through a movie entirely in Polish without a clue what anyone is saying.

I hope they can re-release this with some subtitles, it seems slightly pointless to do a region 1 DVD only for the Polish expatriot community.

Warning - No English Subtitles.......2007-05-28

Very well done story which is quite entertaining. Unfortunately, no English subtitles are available.

Fantastic film about an old Polish legend.......2005-06-10

Jerzy Hoffman brings one of Poland's oldest legends to film -- the story of Popiel. This a story from Poland's prehistory pagan time; a story that has been told and re-told, and Hoffman does a fantastic retelling of the story on film.

The film is well done -- from the eerie music to the fierce battles. There are also rituals and pagan dances that left me in awe thinking this was how Poland was like back then. We also see the Vikings, who battle the pre-history Poles. Oddly, some of the Vikings carry Draco standards resembling the type Sarmatian horsemen carried some 500 years earlier while in Roman service. The battle scenes are comparable in realistic special effects and sheer brutality with other historical films such as "Braveheart."

About half of the cast from Hoffman's "Ogniem i Mieczem" star in "Stara Basn." Michal Zebrowski plays a lead role again and you are sure to recognize several other faces. New faces include Malgorzata Foremniak, who plays Popiel's wife. An interesting aside: Foremniak plays the lead role in the Japanese-Polish film "Avalon," but the make-up and costumes in "Stara Basn" are so well done I didn't recognize her.

"Stara Basn" is an exceptional Polish film. It has action, battles, romance, suspense, and interesting costumes. The movie also has its cultural aspect, as it is based on a classic Polish legend.

Average customer rating:

Bolek & Lolek are very popular and well-known cartoons in Poland

Bolek & Lolek, Vol. 1
Starring: Bolek & Lolek
Manufacturer: Facets Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

General | Indie & Art House | Stores | DVD | Video

Description

Animated in a simple yet very expressive fashion, Bolek & Lolek is a charming children's cartoon that ran for years on Polish television. The characters, two youngsters who imagine adventures around the globe, are depicted without dialogue but with clever sound effects and movement that convey their personalities. This volume includes six Bolek & Lolek tales: "In the Land of Kangaroos," "Tracking Down a Tiger," "In the Polynesian Islands," "In the Land of the Incas," "In the Land of Eskimos," and "In Canada."

Customer Reviews:

Bolek & Lolek are very popular and well-known cartoons in Poland.......2006-07-10

Facets Video brings us a collection of six Bolek & Lolek cartoons where the pair travels the world. They have some daring adventures such as a race to the North Pole in the Artic, tiger hunting in India, and searching for pearls in the Polynesian Islands. These two boys are imaginative kids that get into some trouble, but also know how to have some fun adventures. In a way, the cartoons help provide a geography lesson as well as touch upon a few ideas about other cultures.

Bolek & Lolek are very popular and well-known cartoons in Poland. However, you don't have to know Polish to enjoy them because there is no dialogue, just music and sound effects. This collection of cartoons is entertaining and funny. Kids of all ages will enjoy Facet Video's Bolek & Lolek volume 1.

Average customer rating:

Bolek And Lolek Go Camping No. 2
Starring: Gosia Dobrowolska , Danuta Szaflarska , Jerzy Stuhr , Janusz Michalowski , and Alex Mozdzynski
Director: Jerzy Stuhr
Manufacturer: www.mge.tv
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Bolek and Lolek: On Vacation, Part 1

ASIN: B0009XTPMM
Release Date: 2004-03-12

Product Description

Poland's favorite children's cartoon series, no spoken language, all children on Earth will love these guys.

Average customer rating:

Bolek and Lolek: On Vacation, Part 1
Starring: Bolek I Lolek on Vacation Part 1
Manufacturer: Vision
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

General | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Bolek And Lolek Go Camping No. 2

ASIN: B000A2W0R4
Release Date: 2004-04-20

Bolek and Lolek vol.3 "In The Wild West" Na Dzikiem Zachodzie DVD NTSC Bolek and Lolek Polish Cartoon

Average customer rating:

Bolek and Lolek vol.3 "In The Wild West" Na Dzikiem Zachodzie DVD NTSC Bolek and Lolek Polish Cartoon

Manufacturer: MGE
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

General | Animation | Genres | DVD | Video

Product Description

This simple and expressive animated children's cartoon features two friends, Bolek and Lolek, who imagine adventures around the world. Depicted without dialogue and filled with clever sound effects and movement.