Up and Down

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Up and Down

R

Released Sep 5, 2004

1h 48m

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

83%

Tomatometer

65 Reviews

74%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

Post-Soviet Prague is seen through parallel stories of Czechs who share the same city, and yet are worlds apart. Human traffickers ditch a foreign baby with a working-class couple, who so love their new child that the husband (Jirí Machácek) drops his racist soccer hooligan pals. Meanwhile, middle-class Martin (Petr Forman) returns home years after his now-ailing father wooed and won his girlfriend from him. Since then, the couple has raised a child, Martin's sister -- or maybe his daughter.

Critics Consensus

A tragi-comic exploration of the universal search for stability in post-Communist Prague.

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Marc Savlov

Austin Chronicle

Hrebejk's stylish direction and perfectly chosen cast make what might otherwise have been a depressing tale of post-perestroika working class woes into a melancholy, comedic riff on what it means to be European these days.

Rated: 3/5

May 8, 2005

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Ann Hornaday

Washington Post

For an engrossing, funny, sad, cautiously hopeful portrait of post-Soviet life in Eastern Europe, look no further than Up and Down.

Apr 29, 2005

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Richard Nilsen

Arizona Republic

The movie asks us to see these people as humans and to forgive them for being human and doing to each other what humans beings do to each other. It's a deeply humane film.

Rated: 4/5

Apr 28, 2005

Full Review

Amber Wilkinson

Eye for Film

An ambitious premise that only just falls short of genius.

Rated: 4/5

Jun 14, 2008

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Peter Calder

New Zealand Herald

This densely textured film by the writer-director team responsible for the sublime wartime drama Divided We Fall (2000) displays the same giddy blend of realist drama and bleak humour in the fine absurdist tradition.

Rated: 5/5

Dec 30, 2006

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Marta Barber

Miami Herald

When you understand its message, the film takes on a different level.

Rated: 3/4

Apr 21, 2006

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Audience Member

Jan Hrebejk directed this cleverly sprawling comedy-drama about life in post-Communist Czech Republic.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I really liked it...unlike anything I've seen before, but great characters and acting. Richy developed storyline...the ending doesn't resolve everything so I wouldn't recommend to those who liked tidy conclusions.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/23/23

Full Review

Frances H

I really liked this movie, especially what it had to say about racism and the use of characters who were just ordinary people, not evil villains, to say it. The way the characters and their lives intertwined, the use of some funny comedy moments, and the understandable emotion between the characters made the film a series of very absorbing stories that continued to hold your interest. I particularly like the end credits, too, with their collection of wind-up toys. All-in-all, a very rewarding cinema experience.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/08/13

Full Review

Audience Member

A strange Czech film about race tolerance and especially about intolerance, about emigrants, imigrants... and life itself :) ... The best catch-phrase... about a baby of imigrants with dark skin: "On jet? vybledne..." ("He will still fade...") :)))

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/04/23

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Audience Member

Beautifully done. The actors are wonderful. Czech women are beautiful at every age! Dekuji.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/24/23

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Audience Member

Foreign, Czech. Good movie. Funny in some parts and sad in others. Average story, but done in a very good way. All people tied by a common thread. I liked it.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/28/23

Full Review

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Synopsis

Post-Soviet Prague is seen through parallel stories of Czechs who share the same city, and yet are worlds apart. Human traffickers ditch a foreign baby with a working-class couple, who so love their new child that the husband (Jirí Machácek) drops his racist soccer hooligan pals. Meanwhile, middle-class Martin (Petr Forman) returns home years after his now-ailing father wooed and won his girlfriend from him. Since then, the couple has raised a child, Martin's sister -- or maybe his daughter.

Director: Jan Hrebejk
Producer: Ondrej Trojan
Screenwriter: Jan Hrebejk, Petr Jarchovský
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co: Ceská Televize
Rating: R (Sexual Content|Language|Brief Violence)
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: Czech
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 5, 2004, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Feb 25, 2005
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 13, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $244.1K
Runtime: 1h 48m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)