Green Gold [Starci na chmelu], Czechoslovakia, 1964, drama, musical, comedy, 90 min, VO, English subtitles

Director:  Ladislav Rychman,  Screenplay: Ladislav Rychman, Vratislav Blažek, Music composed by: Jiří Malásek, Jiří Bažant, Vlastimil Hála, Cast: Vladimír Pucholt, Ivana Pavlová, Miloš Zavadil, Irena Kačírková, Josef Kemr, Libuše Havelková, Vladimír Klos, Vladimír Kloubek, Zuzana Šavrdová, Josef Koníček, Josef Laufer, Petr Musil, Jitka Kloubková,

The film is about a boy named Filip (Vladimír Pucholt) who prefers great writers to hanging out with the other boys up to no good takes refuge in the attic where he has made himself a wonderful room, a kind of secret hideaway where he plans to spend the summer. He has a jealous classmate named Honza (Miloš Zavadil) who is always trying to beat him up. Honza seems to have all the luck, riding his motorcycle around, having visits with his “aunt” and getting other people to do his work. He is the resident bad boy pretending to be a good guy.

Being different than the other boys, the teacher (Irena Kačírková) is always suspect of him and he has the unlucky habit of showing up at the wrong time, usually placing him at the scene of trouble. Honza spends most of his time being a bully with the help of his two friends. Eventually, he tells the teachers about the boys hideaway, jealous that he didn’t make it his own. The jealousy undoubtedly springs from the fact that Hanka, of of the prettiest girls in school (Ivana Pavlová) favours the boy and his brains over Honza’s brawn. An innocent puppy-love blossoms in the attic while the other students sing songs about making beer, dance to catchy pop tunes with their comrades, pick hops and try to figure out what is really going on in the attic. Their behaviours invite both conflict and debate among the other characters and we see that emerge in each member of the school as well as feel it in Czech society.

"The story you see and what's so weird about it could have your child, whether he wants to or does not want a family. He can live your child and not just the hops, and when he thinks of it he has achieved his purpose."

This song begins with a Czech musical, which does not need to be imagined. The story of love that was created to distract the surroundings of the hop brigade is one of our most popular films thanks to the great songs singing by Karel Gott, Josef Zima, Jan Petrů, Karel Štědrý and Jana Malknechtová.

Cycle: Czech Republic: 100 years of the Republic in cinematography