Sunday, February 19, 2012

LEMONADE JOE


Limonádový Joe aneb Konská opera – Czechoslovakian title
Konská opera – Czechoslovakian title
Limonadovy Joe – Czechoslovakian title
Joe Limonada – Argentian title
Limonadi Joe – Finnish title
Joe lemonade – French title
Limonaden-Joe – German title
Joe o tromokratis – Greek title
Joe, o lemonadas – Greek title
Limonádé Joe – Hungarian title
Lemoniadowy Joe – Polish title
Limonada Joe – Portuguese title
Horse Opera – English title
Lemonade Joe – English title

A 1964 Czechoslovakian production [Ceskoslovensky Statni Film, Ceskoslovensky Filmexport, Filmove Studio Barrandov (Prague)]
Producer: Jaroslav Jílovec
Diretor: Oldrich Lipský         
Story: Jirí Brdecka
Screenplay: Jirí Brdecka, Oldrich Lipský
Cinematography: Vladimír Novotný [black & white, sepia, Cinemascope]
Music: Vladimír Hála, Jan Rychlik
Song: “When the Smoke Thickens in the Bar, Do You See My Moist Lips” sung by Kveta Fialová
Song: “Whisky to je moje gusto Kdyz v báru houstne dým Mé zvlhlé rty coz nevidís"
Czechoslovakian version sung by Yvetta Simonová (Yvetta Roubalova)
Song: “Arizona, Where All the Good Men Come From” sung by Olga Schoberova
Song “Oh Ye Gods, What a Dime Drink” sung by Karel Gott
Running time: 99 minutes

Cast:
Lemonade Joe – Karel Fiala
Horc Badman/Hogo Fogo – Milos Kopecký
Tornado Lou – Kveta Fialová
Winifred Goodman – Olga Schoberová
Ezra Goodman – Bohus Záhorský
Pancho Kid – Karel Effa
Banjo/Coyote Kid – Waldemar Matuska
Photographer – Vlastmil Bedrna
Cashiers – Lubomir Bryg, Václav Stekl
Old Pistol - Antonín Šůra
Gunmen – Rudolf Cortés, Stanslav Litera, Jaroslav Mares, Antonin Sura
Doug Badman – Rodulf Deyl
Deaf Old Man – Alois Dvorský
Pianist – Erman Fiala
Musicians – Ladislav Gzela, Stanislav Navrartil
Grimpo – Josef Hlinomaz
Barmen – Jirí Lír, Vladimír Mensik
Sheriff – Oldrich Lukes
Poker Players – Milos Nedbal, Antonin Jedlicka, Jirí Schulz
Undertaker – Viktor Ocásek
Bandits – Jan Pohan, Milos Vavruska
Barber – Rudna Princ
Kolalok – Jirí Steimar
Postman – Jaroslav Stercl
Mother – Stella Zázvorková
Cowboy – Jirí Lansky
Brawlers – Antonin Jedlicka, Jaroslav Klenot, Bretislav Dolejsi, Karoly Engel, Vladimír Erlebach, Gustav Jankovsky, Jan Kasik, J. Maran, Oto Rademacher, Jindrich Sejk, Zdenek Srstka, Jaroslav Tomsa, K. Vitek, Ludvik Wolf
With:  Karel Gott, Jirí Hanzl, Vaclav Havelka, Jaroslav Maran, Yvetta Simonova, Jan Stastny, Jaroslav Tetiva, Jarmila Vesela, Lubomir Zacek


Lemonade Joe is a clean-living gunfighter who drinks only Kolaloka lemonade and takes on a town full of whiskey-drinking cowboys. It is a musical comedy parodying the old silent westerns, with color tinting, sped up fight scenes including the obligatory breaking banister.

"What's good for Kolaloka is good for the law!" says one of the characters, and by the end of the film both villains and heroes learn to work together for the sake of business — i.e. the Kolaloka company, whose name is obviously based on Coca Cola. As the film progresses, it becomes clearer that Joe doesn't just clean up the town for morality's sake, but because he wants whiskey out of the way.

One of the subplots involves the arrival of an evangelist in the town, with his daughter. Although the evangelist doesn't seem to be working purely for financial motives, he is both contrasted and likened to Joe in his techniques.

The film's main theme is the continuing controversy of interconnection of big business and government in society. While some would see this as necessary, and good, others think the opposite, hence the film's opinions on large scale American marketing campaigns, such as Coca Cola's, are embodied in Joe's ambiguity as a character... is he an all American hero, or just a shameless shill and coward? Likewise Joe's love interests are torn between the dark haired beauty who works in the bawdy-house, and the clean living blonde evangelist's daughter. Initially he is more interested in the latter, especially as she is involved in a temperance campaign which would be good for his Kolaloka franchise business.

[Brdečka's Lemonade Joe short stories were written for magazines in the early 1940's. They were adapted as a stage play in 1946 and inspired the 1949 puppet film The Song of the Prairie where the theme song appeared for the first time. Brdečka's experience as an animator made for several effects and ideas derived from animation being incorporated into the film.]



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