Barnabáš Kos, an untalented triangle-player in a state orchestra finds himself unfathomably promoted to conductor. Drunk with power, the once meek Kos now seeks to transform the ensemble to suit his own agenda and inflated vision...
Peter Solan's absurdist, darkly funny satire of a corrupt system that rewards mediocrity and breeds petty dictatorship, openly criticised the practices of socialist Czechoslovakia at the time. Its wry exposure of hypocrisy, sycophancy and the corrupting influence of power remains as fresh and relevant today as it did in 1964.
Blu-ray special features:
• The Barnabáš Kos Case (Prípad Barnabáš Kos, 1964) presented from a 2K restoration by the Slovak Film Institute.
• The Invincibility of Absurdity: An introduction to the film by Rastislav Steranka, Director of National Cinematographic Centre, Slovak Film Institute.
• Promotion (Postup, 1968): A short animated film by Viktor Kubal.
• Portrait: Jarmila Košťová (Portrét - Jarmila Košťová, 1969): A short film on the famous Slovak actor.
• Booklet with new writing on the film by author Jonathan Owen and filmmaker Peter Strickland.
• New English subtitle translation.
• UK premiere on Blu-ray.
• Region free Blu-ray (A/B/C).