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I'm Sitting on a Branch, Enjoying Myself (1989)
Director: Juraj Jakubisko
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
In the aftermath of WWII, two chancers, Pepe and Prengel (Polívka and Pavelka), chum up and embark on a crazy adventure, having found gold and jewellery hidden inside a bicycle frame. Falling for a beautiful silent woman who appears to have survived the camps, they set up housekeeping and try to stay afloat in the crazy, anarchic make-do of the times, just as Communism comes to town. Originally to have been called 'Hanging on a Branch' (pointedly, given the date), the final title catches the film's vaudevillian spirit of endurance, of life as sad carnival, embodied in the two men. The tone is half Fellini, half Kusturica. Boisterous and fun, this is the second in Jakubisko's trilogy on freedom. (See also Little Birds, Orphans and Fools and It's Better to Be Wealthy and Healthy Than Poor and Ill.Author: GE
User reviews of this film
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- Jim said...
- Posted on Oct 26 2009 07:23 Favorite movie of all time. Saw it at a film festival. It's hard really to get joy and sadness to completely overlap. Took Mr Jukabisko only and an hour and a half. And I remember it to this day. Vividly. The final scene is beyond magnificent. If you have a copy, I'll buy it.
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Cast & crew
Director: Juraj Jakubisko
Cast: Bolek Polívka, Ondrej Pavelka, Deana Horváthová, Markéta Hrubesová, Stefan Kvietik, Miroslav Machácek, Viliam Polónyi full cast
Duration: 120 mins
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