Closely Watched Czech Humor

y d l e r e s o h o cl atc um w ch h cze d s an g e i n n iro -telli , r e o um ch jok h k e dar rs: cz a e lay cinem and

Danilo Sakamoto Soares Professor Jessie Margaret Labov Introduction to East-Central European Arts and Culture 1 Budapest Metropolitan University

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This project has its beginning upon the matters of the Czech humor which after further investigations reveals its meaning to be, rather than mere eagerness to provoke laugh, layered by ironies deeply tied to social determinations. This interesting cultural feature reflects on the movies produced in that nation translated into a visual joke-telling that, although being in a certain level universally laughable, a fully understanding of it requires the awareness of local situation and socialization.

At fist, due to some similarities in formal and social aspects found during initial research, historical connection between Czech and Jewish humor were expected to exist. This assumption became stronger when in an article about the latter subject, Max Alexander, a Jewish comedian, says that “The [Jewish] humor of Eastern Europe especially was centered around defending the poor against the exploitation of the upper classes or other authority figures, so rabbis were made fun of, authority figures were made fun of and rich people were made fun of.

It really served as a social catharsis”¹.

Besides the overt geographic proximity, the targets of Eastern European Jewish jokes and its social function could be clues leading to approximation with the Czech humor.

But, neverthless resemblances in other aspects are possible to be established, meaning that they in fact share some elements of humor itself, an explicative historical relation between them could not be determined. Therefore both one and the other have to be understood and explained separatedly.

Aiming to demonstrate how Czech humor works, this project will unveil some irony based layers of visual joke-telling examples from the Czech movie “Closely Watched Trains (1966), explaining a couple of historical events hidden in each layer.

[1] Jeff Berkwits, ‘What’s with Jewish comedy?’. http://web.archive.org/ web/20080511151852/http://www.sdjewishjournal.com/stories/cover_aug04.html

resis tan ce From the first minutes of a Czech New Wave film “Closely Watched Trains”, directed by Jiří Menzel, the audience is introduced to ironies building up layers of meanings. Like most of jokes from Czech humor, in this sequence there is an universal level which can be understood by anyone even for those who are not aware of deeper intentions. The main character Miloš Hrma is telling about how his grandfather William, a famous hypnotist, tried to resist with his mind power against the nazi soldiers and tanks which were occupying his nation. For a few seconds, the hypnosis seems to work and the nazi column stops, but unfortunately, maybe due to any sort of malfunction in the first tank, the Hitler’s soldiers ran over the brave resistance.

It would be a simple joke if it was not Miloš’s last sentence: “and nothing else interposed to Reich’s army”.

tac tical retreats

[2] Antonin J. Obrdlik, ‘Gallows Humor”-A Sociological Phenomenon’. American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 47, No. 5 (Mar., 1942), pp. 709 - 716.; Chad Bryant, ‘The Language of Resistance? Czech Jokes and Joke-Telling under Nazi Occupation, 1943-45’. Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 41, No. 1 (Jan., 2006), pp. 133-151.

flip he re

In this scene from the same movie, Counselor Zednicek a czech nazi collaborator, is explaining the serie of tactical retreats made by nazi army as a part of a bigger strategy which will trap the enemies’ armies. At the same time, this part is satirizing the Reich’s defeats and ridiculing the nazi collaborator who, depite of his pomp, is being fooled by his superiors.

The joke-telling targetting nazis and czech collaborators during the time of occupied Czechoslovak is seen as a signal of an actual resistance against the germanization and is attributed to be responsible of strengthening people’s morale and coesion².

Frame from the movie “Closely Watched Trains” (1966), directed by Jiří Menzel

A clearly a class-based view, nazi soldiers are humanized and are shown as normal people following orders to what they are also stranged.

pr ior ities

Despising upper class and authorities, the “national” questions are completely overwhealmed by the peoples businesses that Miloš, having failed on having sex with his girlfriend, he doesn’t even get aware about the gravity of the morning after air raid that could have taken his life.

It’s another example of a joke which has an first universal level that bears a deeper meaning about Czech society.

Frame from the movie “Closely Watched Trains” (1966), directed by Jiří Menzel

Sexual elements are always present in this movie. Probably a feature for the development of the characters, revealing lack or surplus of confidence, hypocrisy, way of life etc.

patc hw ay

And so continues, almost ignoring the going on terrifying war, it’s established the Miloš pursuit of solution to his sexual adversities which keep him from becoming a man. This scene doesn’t need any further explanation to its obvious visual joke.

People celabrates as the train carrying nazi resources explodes after the accomplishment of Miloš bombing it.

Frame from the movie “Closely Watched Trains” (1966), directed by Jiří Menzel

eggs for hitler

When Miloš finally overcomes his misfortunes and lose his virginity, its a sexual element building a character arc again. Now he is confidente to the point he ends up being part of a sabotage operation. Despite that, now a man, he is successful performing his mission of planting a bomb in a train filled with nazi warfare resources, a hidden soldier suddenly shots him dead.

This ironically unworthy death due to a real resistance action in a moment when the Third Reich was already near to its final defeat resemble a famous joke that was spread in an occupied Czechoslovak making fun of the fool martyr and the futility of resistance.

The story goes that in “a village the Gestapo men found a hanged hen with the following inscription fastened to her neck: “I’d rather commit suicide than lay eggs for Hitler.”²