Karel Kachyna’s Brave Czech film, “The Ear”, seems to ask the question of how would George and Martha from Mike Nichols, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf”, behave if they lived in a totalitarian regime and were suddenly thrust into a situation of helpless danger beyond their control.
The couple in question are Ludvik (Radoslav Brzobohaty) and Anna (Jirina Bohdalova), who boast remarkable similarities, not only behaviorally but also in appearance, to the aforementioned George and Martha. Ludvik is a senior official in Prague’s ruling Communist regime, and Anna is his nagging alcoholic wife. The movie follows their lives during one single night, when they were at an official political party. A party where everyone learns that three of their former comrades were arrested for sedation. One of which was Ludvik’s current and now apparently former boss. The movie opens as the couple return home. We only learn about the party they are returning from later on in the film, through a number of flashbacks. As the film unfolds, there is a realization that one of the two lost the main key to their home, which is the catalyst for a barrage of unending and scathing verbal abuse the couple continually hurl at each other. They also have a teenage son, and it quickly becomes painfully obvious that the only thing protecting their son from similar abuse is their disdain for each other.
When they finally enter their home, they find evidence that points to the home having been broken into. In addition, once they enter their home the power and phone lines are cut off. Initially, while continuing to hurl abuse at one another, they blame all of these misgivings on their disobedient son, until they remember that they had locked their son in his room before they left for the party. At this point while at the same time, being disgusted that they actually lock up their son as if he was in jail, I along with them started feeling the suspicion as to why someone is tampering with their private lives.
Their conversation at this point does not quite turn civil as each one blames the other for their developing fear. At this point in the movie there emerges a true villain. The villain is not a person but a regime. It is not only a regime but the actual regime that helped fund the making of the movie. This is the ruling communist regime, which in the movie is referred to as, “The Ear”. The weapon of this villain are the listening devices that the regime uses to take away the freedom of its own people.
It is not surprising that the actual ruling communists suppressed the release of the movie until the bitter end. It took 29 years before anyone had a chance of actually seeing this movie outside of Czech Government officials. Yet even today, 51 years after it was made, it remains potent, powerful and relevant.
Once the couple’s interactions center on the mysterious occurrences happening in their home, their thoughts drift back to the party they had just attended. Their memories of certain seemingly innocent interactions at the party have now taken a sinister feel. It is never revealed in the movie as to why the three men, including Ludvik’s boss were arrested and the subject that resulted in their falling out of favor is never known, but by doing so Kachyna succeeds in emphasizing the nefarious evil that allows totalitarian Governments to do what they want with the people they control. In 1970 the world was just entering the high tech world of surveillance and listening devices. Today, that ability is even more prevalent, making the warning that is driven home in the movie that much more relevant.
Since most of the movie is filmed during the period that the power is cut off from the house, the majority of the black and white cinematography is dark and ominous. Almost hyper noir-like in its tone, which adds to the schizophrenic feel of paranoia in the movie.
There are two startling changes of tone that hit on the movie themes the loudest. Ludvik and Anna match George and Marsha with their cruelty and verbal venom. They both see no issue in deeply hurting each other. However, as soon as they believe that an outside force is going to tear them apart and hurt them severely, they crumble in search of their lost love and even tenderness groping for warmth to alleviate the fear. It is powerful stuff and something that was lacking in Nichols previous and more highly acclaimed film. These true scenes are full of real empathy for people who are not particularly nice or someone that I cared about throughout most of the movie. Yet I was saddened when the dark reality of their predicament was made clear through their own personal fear and sadness. A year later the great Stanley Kubrick would succeed in doing the exactly the same thing with his masterpiece, “A Clockwork Orange”.
“The Ear” is a lost hidden treasure from the days of the Iron Curtain, made by an artist who was screaming against the suppression of freedom in his own country. That it took 29 years for the movie to be finally released is a tragedy. It was a worthwhile wait indeed.
1001 Movies before you die 