The Other '68: The Firemen's Ball 
A milestone of the Czech New Wave, Miloš Forman’s (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest) last film before his forced exile to the US is both a dazzling comedy and a provocative political satire.
A hilarious saga of good intentions confounded, the story chronicles a firemen’s ball where nothing goes right—from a beauty pageant whose reluctant participants embarrass the organisers to a lottery from which nearly all the prizes are pilfered. Presumed to be a commentary on the floundering Czech leadership, the film was “banned forever” in Czechoslovakia following the Russian invasion and prompted Forman’s move to America.
This screening will be introduced by Des O'Rawe, Film Studies at Queen's.
THE OTHER '68: Alternative Takes on Turbulent Times
In the history of cinema, 1968 is often associated with images of students rioting in Paris, the assassination of Martin Luther King, the escalation of war in Vietnam, and the wider culture of protest and civic activism. QFT, in partnership with Film Studies at Queen’s, presents a short season exploring some contemporary films that have a more oblique – but no less significant – relationship with the upheavals of ‘68.
Don't miss the other films in the season: Faces, My Night With Maud and The Great Silence.
Part of Uprising: Spirit of ’68, a season supported by funds from the National Lottery, led by Film Hub Midlands on behalf of the BFI UK Film Audience Network.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
The Other '68: Faces
John Cassavetes puts a disintegrating marriage and American middle-class suburban life under the microscope in this visceral, Oscar-nominated drama. First screened 50 years ago, Faces was an explosive moment for DIY filmmaking in America.
The Other '68: My Night With Maud
An all-time gem of French cinema, Éric Rohmer's My Night With Maud is a captivating interrogation of morality and temptation.
The Other '68: The Great Silence
Jean-Louis Trintignant and Klaus Kinski star in this astonishingly transgressive Spaghetti Western from director Sergio Corbucci (Django). The film is a favourite of Quentin Tarantino, who borrowed both Ennio Morricone and the snowbound setting for his Hateful Eight.