Citizen Havel

I don't see this film as a monument to Václav Havel. Rather, it is a journey back in time to a time when Czech politics (even the so-called top politics) could be taken with humor and detachment, without it having to be a defense against it. As such a time machine, Citizen Havel works perfectly. It's just the (black) comedy that I really miss in the genres. Most emotional moment: Olga's funeral. Most interesting moment: the meeting with Miloš Zeman. Funniest moment: a shot of a beatifically smiling Václav Klaus sitting in Reduta. (24/01/2013)

I admit that I was expecting something different. Something more sincere, humane and fitting for Havel. Something more like the style of his book “Power of the Powerless". An insight into the presidential kitchen. But we don’t get that. In the end, Citizen Havel is neither about Havel the politician, nor Havel the dramatist, nor Havel the “man of the people in office", nor is it about Havel the regular citizen. And I would see the reason behind that as being that Pavel Koutecký didn’t have a chance to edit the material that he took twelve years filming. I don’t want to imply here that the result was uninteresting or even boring. It isn’t. It is about half an hour longer than would have been ideal and there are surprisingly few moments that give you that sinking feeling (these include Miloš Zeman, the Lucerna affair, Olga’s funeral, EU bureaucracy “vs" war in Albania and a couple of other moments). At the same time, it is all too obvious that Václav didn’t manage to get used to the camera completely. Despite all its negatives, I would recommend watching Citizen Havel (ideally on TV), even though it does Havel a disservice here and there. Because it’s entertaining, almost unique in terms of length and lack of censorship, will definitely make you laugh out loud at a couple of moments (dusting off Klaus in a father-like way is one of the gems of Czech cinema), you find out some things you didn’t know, but it doesn’t have any more permanent value. Because it can’t make up its mind what it wants to be. And it doesn’t matter if you hate Havel or if you automatically set a halo on his head. I suppose only if you don’t give a damn about him, then there is no point in watching the movie. There’s something here to please everybody, but that not much of it, mind you. My resulting rating reflects more my disappointment over what could have been rather than over the real qualities of Citizen Havel as a documentary. P.S. It might be interesting, in view of the sheer quantity of material, to go back into the archives in a few years time and, with the benefit of greater hindsight, try to edit it together differently. And better. (31/01/2008)

A very pleasant, engaging and point-oriented documentary that presents Havel as a complex and distinct personality... the unifying moment can be considered the jagged Havel and Klaus relationship as a battle of two principles, yet something tells me that it should have been a little tighter and less banded. Maybe the fact that Janek did not film the material himself, but only arranged it, manifested itself here. I like that Citizen Havel does not try to glorify or avoid the negatives of Havel as a person... it must be said that after watching this attractive documentary, it was reaffirmed to me that living in a society shaped more by Havel's humanism would be a hundred times better than wobbling in a predatory Klaus system. (28/05/2008)

Practically none of the television and film documentaries about Czech post-revolution but actually socialist politicians can be considered a success, and they mostly fail due to their inability to analyze his life from all sides and with a truly independent perspective. Usually, this defect manifests in the author's relationship to the subject of his work. This flaw is fully evident in Citizen Havel as well. It records Havel's life, his opinions, and actions wherever the president allows the film to go. The documentary is co-directed by Václav Havel, and even though it seems to reveal unfavorable aspects of his persona, it is all within the framework of his directorial license. Havel was always more of an intellectual and primarily an artist, who was unable to influence the political developments around him according to his ideas precisely because he didn't understand political processes at all, and his numerous attempts to influence the Czech political scene regularly ended in a disaster and had the opposite effect than intended. Havel disliked political institutions and especially political parties, so he persistently tried to ignore them and relied on strong personalities among his friends, regardless of how willing political parties were to accept them. His political views are neither left nor right-leaning. However, they are strongly elitist; I think they resemble how the Iranian Islamic Republic operates, a certain "democracy" run by a council of the wise. His international reputation was influenced by the Secret Police and the communist government that harassed him. If it weren't for real socialism, he would probably have ended up as one of many left-wing salon intellectuals with impractical, detached-from-reality but radical ideas on how to save the world. Specifically, Havel only allows filmmakers to get close to him where he deems it appropriate. He would only let you form a comprehensive opinion about him in your dreams. If you already have the ideas that the film tries to sell about Havel before watching it, then you should not hesitate to visit the movie theater. However, if you keep a distance from him and his ideas, you won't find ammunition for criticism, and overall, it's a waste of time because a quality documentary should focus more on content than form. Overall impression: 40%. (29/04/2011)

From all sides, I heard praise for the fact that the film, true to its title, does not focus on Havel the politician. Therefore, I was surprised to discover that the primary documentary thread follows the Man Havel and his conflicts and opinions in relation to, uh, politics. Nevertheless, I still join in the positive feedback because this entertaining-educational form has almost enchanted me, even though it could have explored the theme much further. (28/09/2008)