Protector

Finally, a film that attempts to come to terms with the past in a fairly ordinary way. This gray film, where it seems like joy is missing, managed to achieve what The Butcher of Prague failed to. It's as if color isn't present here, plus there are excellent details that the film focuses on, enhancing the era, place, and events. One ordinary bike and what it can do. From time to time, interesting filmmaking techniques are used, which only make the film more intriguing in that it is a piece that can seriously grasp the past in a different, yet not bad, way. (2013-12-24)

I’d give it 7/10, but I don’t feel at all like rounding up this time. Visually, this is an exceptionally beautiful film, the performances are flawless and so is the direction, but it lacks pace in a terrible way. Yes, it’s boring! I liked Normal a lot more than this tarted-up romance, and I’m also not really sure what it is (primarily) about… (2009-12-13)

The best Czech film I've seen in years - and not just in the movie theater. There is not a single needless scene, and the direction, the superbly stylized and deliberately color-poor cinematography and the music complement each other perfectly. All this with likeable actors who really know how to act. I applaud and I will definitely go see it again. I hope as many people as possible do the same - this film shouldn't get lost. I give it a big chance at foreign festivals. (2009-09-24)

A beautiful and incredibly original movie. Who would have thought that we can shoot an interwar-era movie in such an original way in our small country… Marek Najbrt came up with an innovative directing, Miloslav Holman came up with an innovative camerawork and the band Midi Lidi along with Petr Marek put together a soundtrack that will probably lure me in for a listen for the rest of my life. And, of course, I can’t forget to mention Tuček, Najbrt a Geisler who wrote a perfectly ingenious script, and also the acting performances of the actors and actresses like Jana Plodková and Marek Daniel. Not only is Protector, without a doubt, a job well-done, but it might also be one of the most original movies that our little country had the honor to film. I congratulate and thank the creators for this grand movie experience. (2015-07-18)

Proof that excuses for anything are just the alibis of filmmakers who won't admit their own inability to make a good film. Protector is European filmmaking in every sense. After it was over I was still staring silently for half an hour, searching for words. It’s one of those films that fascinates you while you're watching it, but you can't easily go back to it for its emotional impact. (2010-04-26)