Name a well-known Czech TV drama series? It’s not easy, I’ll give you that. Nothing immediately springs to mind, so this drama didn’t really raise my expectations particularly high. But – not for the first time – I was very wrong.
If you want to avoid all spoilers, stop reading now.
‘Actor’ is set in Czechoslovakia in the 1950s. It’s about a young man called Stanislav Láník (Jan Cina) who lives in a modest apartment with his grandmother and sister, both of his parents having passed away – his father dying in the resistance and his mother murdered. Stan is a budding and promising actor, but despite getting rave reviews for his performances, his political beliefs mean that the theatre company director dare no longer use him through fear of repercussions for the company.
In addition to his acting talents, Stan is very interested in mathematics. But he’s poor, and there is no opportunity for him to study with the country’s elite. That is until one of his political allies gets him a job at the university – as a maintenance man. Using the pretext of fixing the radiators in the halls of residence, Stan befriends the maths professor, impressing him with his intelligence and aptitude for mathematics.
It soon becomes clear, however, that the professor is not only interested in Stan for his intellect. He suggests that his protégée joins him at his house in the woods so that they can study together for the forthcoming exams. Stan soon realises that the professor has an ulterior motive for inviting him to his private retreat. But rather than push him away, he chooses to succumb to the older man’s attentions.
However, when a group of men storm the house, they arrest the professor for homosexuality – and we soon learn that Stan is not the innocent victim we assume him to be.
Meanwhile back at the apartment, Stan’s sister, Anezka (Jenovéfa Boková) falls asleep in the bath. The water overflows and the landlord – who wants them out of the building – bangs on the door to alert her to the fact that she’s causing a flood. During the ensuing argument, he loses his temper and assaults and rapes Anezka.
You will have realised by now that this is not a lightweight piece of televisual fluff. It’s thought-provoking, intelligent drama where there’s no such thing as black and white, good and evil – it recognises that we all have a bit of both in us. The script, the acting, the direction – all of it is first class. Jan Cina is quite superb in the lead role, and the supporting cast do a fine job too. The action is occasionally interspersed with genuine vintage footage from the 1950s – its grainy, blurred imagery adding to the atmosphere of palpable fear that people lived in during the years after the war.
Each episode is nearly 90 minutes long, giving it time to breath and enabling us to get to know the characters and their weaknesses. But the 90 minutes doesn’t drag – it’s thoroughly engaging and absorbing throughout.
‘Actor’ (also known as ‘Herec’) won Best TV Series at the Venice TV Awards and has been nominated for various awards in its native Czechia. It certainly deserves a wider audience, and I suspect followers of Walter Presents will lap this up – it’s one of the finest series they’ve delivered.
Walter Presents: ‘Actor’ is available on C4 Streaming as a full boxset now.
