In 1947 by the Beskid mountains, the traces of war still linger, destroyed tanks dispersed throughout the farmland creating an eerie backdrop. This film follows a ten-year-old boy and the strange visions he encounters, his world of fantasy exacerbated with ample time, space, and a lack of companionship or guidance. We see the adults that influence and dominate his life, for better or for worse. Surreal and packed with an excellent study of human emotions and motivations compounded by their rural, isolated vacuum of a town, this is a timeless and severely underrated film from a brilliant Czech director.
The director and choreographer from Prague are preparing a show performance "Oriental Fairy Tale" - a ballet on ice with the participation of vocal and instrumental ensembles and pop singers. They are shooting their picture in Kazakhstan at the Medeo high-altitude skating rink.
Hlavními postavami je mladá psycholožka Doubravka a vesnický mladík Honza Macháček. On je traktorista, který při ztřeštěné sázce dočasně přišel o řidičský průkaz, takže teď pase družstevní stádo krav, ona je na chatě se svým chlapcem Bobou, který nepříliš úspěšně studuje medicínu a právě se připravuje na opravné zkoušky. Honzova bezprostřednost, optimismus a přístup k životu i práci ostře kontrastuje se sobeckým, slabošským a nevyrovnaným Bobou a Doubravka si stále víc uvědomuje, že její cit k Bobovi zmizel a doopravdy má vlastně ráda Honzu. Otázkou je, jak se na takovou partii bude dívat její poněkud konzervativní rodina.
Tram driver Marie has far too much to do after her shift is over. But she likes to do it all since she loves her husband Václav sincerely. One day she spots him on the Lesser Town Square in Prague, kissing an attractive blonde good-bye. It seems to Marie that her small comfortable world has collapsed and she walks out of the tram in tears. But her sadness does not last long. She wipes off the tears and begins to act. She withdraws all the money from their savings books and buys off all the latest models from the Fashion Works. The visit to the beauty salon then completes her transformation into a lady.
A man boards on a tram together with a naked boy. Somebody has stolen the boy's clothes when he was out bathing, leaving him with not even change for the tram. The man has taken care of him and is taking him home. At first nobody notices them but as soon as the people realize they are seeing something out of the ordinary they begin to react to the situation. Some are content with the simple explanation as to why the boy is naked. Others are agitated, for they see the whole situation as something unseemly. An ordinary incident, which might have been passed over in silence, results in a heated argument that turns into a fight. More and more people join in the fight until the police are forced to intervene.