DITA SAXOVÁ Czech Literature in Czech Film

In a postwar dormitory for Jewish orphans/Krystyna Mikolajewska dreamily fends off girlish
jealousies, an assortment of suitors (director Jirf Menzel is the one with the glasses), and the
occasional importunate older man, while converting her dentist father’s gold foil legacy into a
flashy bracelet and lavish presents-but what is missing? A tour-de-force of black and white
widescreen photography by the great cameraman Jaroslav Kucera (husband and collaborator of
Vera Chytilova), most notably in 360° dolley shots during the birthday party. A lament for another
“lost generation ”