aka ADÉLA JEŠTĚ NEVEČEŘELA
Label: Deaf Crocodile
Region Code: A
Rating: Unrated
Duration: 107 Minutes 10 Minutes
Audio: Czech DTS-HD MA 2.0 Dual-Mono with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.66:1)
Director: Jan Svankmajer, Oldřich Lipský
Cast: Michal Dočolomanský, Miloš Kopecký, Olga Schoberová, Rudolf Hrušínský
What starts as a missing person report, which turns out to be a canine by way of a Great Dane, then turns out to be connected to Carter's old arch-nemesis, who was previously thought to have died in quicksand in the Amazon. The baddie is 'The Gardener' (Miloš Kopecký, The Fabulous Baron Munchausen), who is masquerading around Prague a Baron Rupert von Kratzmar, attempting to lure his former Professor Boček (Ladislav Pesek) into the jaws of a giant carnivorous plant he found while living with a tribe of indigenous people in the Amazon, and which he has trained to eat flesh when summoned with a classical lullaby. We also get a love interest for Nick by way of the Professor's lovely daughter Květuše (Naďa Konvalinková, The Great Movie Robbery), a femme fatale by way of a very sexy cat-masked cabaret entertainer Irma (Olga Schoberová, The Vengeance of She), and a Kratzmar's comically moustache-twirling henchman (Víclav Lohniský)
Extras:
This delightful genre-mash detective story comes from the Czech Republic, directed by Jan Svankmajer and Oldřich Lipský, it tells the circa-1900 story of Nick Carter, America's Greatest Detective (Michal Dočolomanský, The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians), who apparently is a dime novel detective created by John R. Coryell that appeared in numerous book, films and radio serials between 1886-1990, but of who I am quite unfamiliar with. Nick is summonsed to Prague to investigate the case of a missing dog belonging to Countess Thun (Kveta Fialová, Closely Watched Trains). The film starts off with Nick hanging out in his New York City office where he casually dispatches three assassins in quick order, the whole sequence having the frivolity of a silent era serial. He next arrives in Prague via train in a ridiculously antiquated "disguise", these opening scenes establishing Nick as an unflappable if somewhat silly investigator. He's quickly teamed up with the pilsner and polish sausage loving local detective Commisar Ledvina (Rudolf Hrusínský, The Cremator) who dutifully takes him on a tour of pubs in the area, getting him properly soused.
What starts as a missing person report, which turns out to be a canine by way of a Great Dane, then turns out to be connected to Carter's old arch-nemesis, who was previously thought to have died in quicksand in the Amazon. The baddie is 'The Gardener' (Miloš Kopecký, The Fabulous Baron Munchausen), who is masquerading around Prague a Baron Rupert von Kratzmar, attempting to lure his former Professor Boček (Ladislav Pesek) into the jaws of a giant carnivorous plant he found while living with a tribe of indigenous people in the Amazon, and which he has trained to eat flesh when summoned with a classical lullaby. We also get a love interest for Nick by way of the Professor's lovely daughter Květuše (Naďa Konvalinková, The Great Movie Robbery), a femme fatale by way of a very sexy cat-masked cabaret entertainer Irma (Olga Schoberová, The Vengeance of She), and a Kratzmar's comically moustache-twirling henchman (Víclav Lohniský)
The tone of this is decidedly comic and slapstick, think The Pink Panther or The Assassination Bureau, with cool little steampunk inventions and James Bond-esque spy gadgetry, mixed with the carnivorous flower shenanigan of Roger Corman's The Little Shop of Horrors, which is brought to life with some wonderful stop-motion animation from Jan Švankmajer. Other flourishes include a terrific tea party wherein the Baron's animated plants serve the tea, Carter's ability to create make-up effects to turn Ledvina into a mirror-version of himself, a full-body suit get-up that he uses to traverse the rooftops of Prague which brought to mind the Victorian-era Gotham By Gaslight comic; and the baddie Barron escaping by Hot Air Balloon only for Carter to pursue him on a flying bicycle, it's quite farcical and fun detective story that should appeal to fans of Sherlock Holmes stories with a surreal and comic twist.
Audio/Video: Adele Has Not Had Supper Yet (1975) gets a region-A loc ked Blu-ray from cinema-gem miners Deaf Crocodile, this being a gorgeous new restoration from the original camera negative and sound elements by the Národní filmový archive, Prague. While a tad soft at times due to source limitation, lighting, and the mixing of stop-notion and animation, generally the image is quite attractive with warm, supple colors, a layer of fine film grain, and only the occasional stray blemish to detract from it. Audio comes by way of Czech language DTS-HD MA 2.0 dual-mono with optional English subtitles. The track is clean and nicely buoyant, dialogue sounds sharp, and the score and sound effects please in the mix.
As usual Deaf Crocodile impress with their extras, we get New Audio Commentary by Czech film expert Irena Kovarova of Comeback Company and Czech film critic and screenwriter Tereza Brdečková, plus Four Rare Jiří Brdečka Animated Shorts by way of the 14-min Badly Drawn Hen (Špatně namalovaná slepice / Gallina Vogelbirdae) – 1963, the 8-min The Miner's Rose (Horníkova růže) - 1974, the 10-min Forester’s Song / To the Forest (Do lesíčka na čekanou) – 1966, 10-min What Did I Not Tell The Prince (Co jsem princi neřekla) – 1975.
The single-disc standard release version arrives in a clear Scanavao, full-height keepcase with a 2-sided, non-reversible sleeve of artwork. Inside there is a scannable QR code that takes you to a transcribed version of the audio commentary.
Special Features:
- New restoration from the original camera negative and sound elements by the Národní filmový archiv, Prague
- New audio commentary by Czech film expert Irena Kovarova of Comeback Company and Czech film critic and screenwriter Tereza Brdečková
- Four rare Jiří Brdečka animated shorts Badly Drawn Hen (Špatně namalovaná slepice / Gallina Vogelbirdae) – 1963 (13:40), The Miner's Rose (Horníkova růže) - 1974 (8:05), Forester’s Song / To the Forest (Do lesíčka na čekanou) – 1966, (9:35) What Did I Not Tell The Prince (Co jsem princi neřekla) – 1975, (9:33),
Screenshots from the Deaf Crocodile Blu-ray:
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