Daisies
Digitally restored classic from the Czech new wave about two bored girls who stir things up.
A satirical, wild, and irreverent story of rebellion, Vera Chytilová’s classic of surrealist cinema is also the most adventurous and anarchic Czech movie of the 1960s. Two young women, both named Marie, revolt against a degenerate, decayed and oppressive society, attacking symbols of wealth and bourgeois culture. Believing the world to be ‘spoiled’, they embark on a series of pranks in which nothing – food, clothes, men, war – is taken seriously.
The communist regime wanted to ban the screening of the film because of its ‘nihilistic’ character, but was forced to back down under pressure from the younger generation. Czech authorities did however prohibit Chytilová from working until 1975.
Defiant feminist statement? Nihilistic, avant-garde comedy? Daisies remains a cinematic enigma and its influence is still felt today.