The Pendulum, the Pit and Hope

  • Czechoslovakia Kyvadlo, jáma a naděje
Short / Horror
Czechoslovakia, 1983, 15 min

Directed by:

Jan Švankmajer

Based on:

Edgar Allan Poe (book) (more)

Screenplay:

Jan Švankmajer

Cinematography:

Miloslav Špála

Plots(1)

The film combines real-life settings with puppets and it describes in a suggestive manner human suffering and the hope for relief. Dramatically speaking, it expertly combines the contents of the stories "The pit and the Pendulum" by Edgar Allen Poe and "The Hope" by A. Villiers de l'Isle Adam. It is a classic horror story from the era of the Inquisition. While in Poe's story the main hero escapes from the devilish inquisition trap, Svankmajer, inspired by Isle Adam, has the escape planed in advance. Similarly to other Svankmajer pictures, the protagonist has no chance to avoid is fate. (official distributor synopsis)

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Reviews (1)

Hromino 

all reviews of this user

English This is one of my favorite stories by Poe, which Svankmajer managed to translate into the form of a short movie to perfection. ()