Film

Svejk Wrecks Germany

1943 · 1h 5m · Comedy · War

IMDb

6.2

KAREL LAMAČ (1987-1952), who worked in Germany for a long time, was forced to leave for France and then Great Britain before Hitler's fascism, where he continued to direct films. His film Švejk is Destroying Germany from 1943 was created under the influence of wartime circumstances and was intended mainly for a British audience. Perhaps this is also why the tone of the original Czech hero of Hašek's humorous original deviates from his traditional way of portraying him. He transfers him to the wartime reality of the time and, through a series of coincidences, makes him a military servant of the Gestapo commander, which gives Švejk the opportunity to save many people from deportation to concentration camps. Lamač is therefore not driven by the motive of an authorial interpretation but rather by the need for propaganda. This is also emphasized by Foreign Minister Jan Masaryk, whose opening words were added to this comedy in 1947, when it was released into Czechoslovak film distribution.

Lloyd Pearson

Josef Schweik

Maggie Rennie

Madame Lidia Karova

Julien Mitchell

Gestapo Chief

Richard Attenborough

Railway worker

George Carney

Gendarme

Jan Masaryk

Narrator

• Karel LamačDirector

Release date

October 18, 1943

Status

Released

Original language

English

Runtime

1h 5m

Genres

Comedy, War