Menzel, for the sixth time, used a novel by Bohumil Hrabal as the source for his exuberant tale of the rise of a little man from lowly hot-dog vendor to millionaire – before his inevitable downfall. Played as a wily young man, with a deft mix of Keaton and Chaplin, by Ivan Barnev, then as an old man, with knowing serenity, by Oldřich Kaiser, our hero exposes the venal nature of capitalism while gleefully trying his best to embody it. Menzel veers closer to bawdy comedy than one would expect of a revered Eastern European auteur, but the resulting dissonance is frequently delightful.

35mm print courtesy of the National Film and Sound Archive, Australia.

Co-presented with The Melbourne Cinémathèque.