Set during World War II, Zbynek Brynych's 1964 The Fifth Horseman Is Fear revolves around a Jewish physician named Dr. Braun, who is barred from practicing in Prague under the laws imposed by the Nazi occupation, and reduced to working as a docent in a new museum being created by the Third Reich that will offer a historic overview of a soon-to-be-extinct civilization: Europe's Jews. Already the collection is packed with endless rows of clocks, musical instruments, furniture, and closed paintings—all possessions and merchandise taken from deported Jewish families and closed businesses. One night, Dr. Braun is recruited by a neighbor to operate on a wounded resistance fighter, whom he then hides in his apartment—but the man needs morphine for his pain, and the doctor has none. After a harrowing internal debate, Braun resolves to search the black market underworld for the morphine, embarking on a surreal nightmarish odyssey through a once-civilized society now warped by the Nazi regime. Shot in stark black-and-white and framed with a jarring sense of unease permeating each frame, this is an extraordinary testament to human courage, as well as a landmark of Czechoslovakian cinema. DVD extras include an onscreen introduction from Andrew J. Horton, editor of the film journal Kinoeye. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. (P. Hall)
The Fifth Horseman Is Fear
Facets, 100 min., in Czech w/English subtitles, not rated, DVD: $29.95 Volume 21, Issue 5
The Fifth Horseman Is Fear
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