Dir. František Vláčil (Czechoslovakia, USSR)

Part of the series ‘Becoming Epic – Myth, Legend and Folk Tale through Colour and Sound’

TARQ will be hosting screenings of five films that are a part of the series ‘Becoming Epic – Myth, Legend and Folk Tale through Colour and Sound’. The series has been conceptualized by Mumbai based film scholar Elroy Pinto. The screenings are accompanied by a series of essays by Pinto under the same title.

Made in erstwhile Czechoslovakia (today divided into Czech Republic and Slovakia), Valley of Bees finds its inspiration in medieval epics and the dramatic tenor of opera. This manifests in visuals that engage in dramatic shadow play and a sound design that draws upon the solemnity of choral sounds and Gregorian chants. The use of architecture as a dramatic device, along with the interesting use of light and shadow creates the effect of a blurred demarcation between the virtuous and malevolent characters in this black and white film.

We are tremendously grateful to National Film Archive (Czech Republic) for granting us the permission to screen this film.