I Served the King of England
| 15 Aug 2007
Jirí Menzel once made a famous film called Closely Observed Trains, which was more thrilling than its title suggests, but for some time now his reputation has been cooling in the shadow of his former comrade in the so-called Czech New Wave, Milos Forman. Menzel's new film, I Served the King of England, stands a good chance of being popular in English-speaking countries. A rite-of-passage comedy in which Jan Díte, a rootless soul with koruna signs in his eyes, falls under the influence of a series of mentors including a maitre d' who explains his expertise in all matters by delivering the film's title and the slightly less savoury Adolf Hitler. The older Jan narrates the tale, mostly in voiceover, recounting the erotic and professional delights of his youth, but also ruing the follies.
Jan, with his sweet child's face and prankish habits, is in danger of being a Czech Amélie Poulain, so it is crucial that Menzel, adapting Bohumil Hrabal's novel, dramatises the moral dangers that befall him. Jan undergoes all of the processes by which gullible young idealists become sclerotic windbags mugged by reality. But the film manages to be buoyant as well, with a keen sense of comic mischief reminiscent of silent film. Life Is Beautiful and Goodbye Lenin! seemed to demonstrate once and for all that farce and totalitarianism were a poor fit, but Menzel goes some way to rectifying that impression in this amiable film.
Jan, with his sweet child's face and prankish habits, is in danger of being a Czech Amélie Poulain, so it is crucial that Menzel, adapting Bohumil Hrabal's novel, dramatises the moral dangers that befall him. Jan undergoes all of the processes by which gullible young idealists become sclerotic windbags mugged by reality. But the film manages to be buoyant as well, with a keen sense of comic mischief reminiscent of silent film. Life Is Beautiful and Goodbye Lenin! seemed to demonstrate once and for all that farce and totalitarianism were a poor fit, but Menzel goes some way to rectifying that impression in this amiable film.