A dark comedy about a murder and its consequences presented in a backwards manner, where death is actually a rebirth. The film starts with an "execution" of the main protagonist and goes back to explore his previous actions and motivations.
Direction
Lipský's reverse choreography is genuinely mind-bending.
Editing
Every reverse action demands precise, invisible craft.
Acting
Menšík plays murderous butcher with weirdly charming glee.
Director
Oldřich Lipský
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Every actor had to learn their dialogue phonetically backwards, then the film was reversed in post—so their speech plays forward while action rewinds.
Made during 1968 Prague Spring's brief thaw; its absurdist cynicism about justice eerily predicted Soviet crackdown months later.
XC
