Tmavomodrý svet (2001)

Director:

Jan Sverák

Writers:

Zdenek Sverák (story) and
Zdenek Sverák (screenplay)

Release Date:

17 May 2001 (Czech Republic)

Genre:

War | Drama | Action | Romance

Plot:

The friendship of two men becomes tested when they both fall for the same woman.

Plot Keywords:

Pilot | Spitfire Aircraft | Fighter Plane | Battle Of Britain | Airplane

Awards:

7 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Ondrej Vetchý	...	Frantisek Sláma
Krystof Hádek	...	Karel Vojtisek
Tara Fitzgerald	...	Susan Whitmore
Charles Dance	...	Wing Commander Bentley
Oldrich Kaiser	...	Jan Machatý
David Novotný	...	Bedrich Mrtvý
Linda Rybová	...	Hanicka Pecharova
Jaromír Dulava	...	Railwayman Kanka
Lukás Kantor	...	Tom Tom
Radim Fiala	...	Jura Sysel
Juraj Bernáth	...	Jan Gregora
Miroslav Táborský	...	Vilha Houf
Hans-Jörg Assmann	...	Doctor Blaschke
Thure Riefenstein	...	German Officer Hesse
Anna Massey	...	English Teacher

Also Known As:

Dark Blue World (International: English title) (UK) (USA)
Leidenschaft in dunklen Tagen (Germany) (TV title)

MPAA:

Rated R for sexuality/nudity.

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

Czech Republic | UK | Germany | Denmark | Italy

Language:

Czech | German | English | Slovak

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital EX

Certification:

USA:TV-MA (cable rating) | Australia:M | Brazil:12 | Finland:K-7 | Germany:12 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:NC-16 | Spain:13 | UK:12 | USA:R | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Czech Republic

Company:

Biograf Jan Sverak

Trivia:

The most expensive Czech movie so far. The most expensive scene from total budget of 8 milion USD is where British Spitfire attacks German train. It cost more than the whole Oscar-winning Sverak's movie Kolya (Kolja).

Goofs:

Anachronisms: When Susan is explaining to Karel that her husband is serving in the Royal Navy but has been missing at sea for a year, the ship below his photograph is an American Iowa class battleship. The first ship of this class (USS Iowa, BB-61) was not commissioned until February of 1943, long after the period of the film.

Quotes:

Cpl. Pierce: [singing, to the tune of the Colonel Bogey March] 'itler, 'as only got one ball. Goering, has two but very small. 'immler, 'as somethin' simm'lar, and Goebbles 'as nothin' down there at all.

Movie Connections:

Edited from Memphis Belle (1990)

Soundtrack:

Svítá

History you never find in books

In addition to being a drama, this film gives a rather nice account of the Czech struggle against both Nazi Germany and the Stalinist Soviet Union. Having read "The Big Show" by Pierre Clostermann, and having had an Polish acquaintance who escaped Poland after the Nazi onslaught and made it to England, I found the main story line to be reasonably in line historical fact. Thanks to a combination of computer imagery and some surviving Spitfires of the era, the flying scenes are very convincing. The detail in the Spitfire attack on the German train is consistent with real life events of the time.

The dramatic aspects of the story are entirely believable also. Lonely men far from home and facing death on a daily basis behave very much like the characters in this story. The turns of events also reflect a very believable story line. The directors do a creditable job of blending three different time periods so that there is enough continuity to make the drama of this story manageable.

This film held my interest from the start for several reasons: I'm a retired military flier; I'm a student of history, especially the history of WWII; I'm way past being tired of the trashy Hollywood versions of world events. This film is a top notch product in every respect.