A few thoughts about the Czech filmmaker, Věra Chytilová, who died March 12 in Prague. She was 85. Chytilová was one of the key directors of the Czech New Wave and is renowned for her feminist classic, Daisies (1966). Experimental and surrealist, Daisies is an anarchic trip about two girls behaving badly and strangely.
A few thoughts about the Czech filmmaker, Věra Chytilová, who died March 12 in Prague. She was 85. Chytilová was one of the key directors of the Czech New Wave and is renowned for her feminist classic, Daisies (1966). Experimental and surrealist, Daisies is an anarchic trip about two girls behaving badly and strangely. The exploits of Chytilová’s anti-heroines include cutting up and setting fire to stuff, disrupting a cabaret act at a chic club, wining and dining with older men (only to abandon them later at train stations), gate-crashing an opulent, official banquet, and starting a food fight. It is their merry, nihilistic response to their rotten, meaningless world. The look of the film is extraordinary- the colors change, the images and cuts daze- while the tone is, at once, provocative and exhilarating. Seek it out if you haven’t already experienced its anti-patriarchal, anti-establishment energy. Here’s to a great filmmaker. Rest in peace, Ms. Chytilová.
Rachael Johnson has contributed articles on film to CINEACTION, www.objectif-cinema.com and www.jgcinema.com. She has also reviewed film-related books for the online film journal Scope and literary works for the online literary magazine Warscapes. Her other writing interests include personal essay writing and other kinds of cultural criticism.
Rachael holds a Master of Arts in French and Theory of Literature from University College London. A British national, she grew up in Uganda, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Saudi Arabia and Northern Cyprus. A teacher and lecturer of English and EFL, as well as tutor of creative writing, she has also lived in France, Italy, Malaysia, Burma, and England. She is currently based in beautiful Cornwall. Other interests and passions include modern history, world politics, Siamese cats and cocktails.
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