Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.5

The Ear Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov September 12, 2019

Karel Kachyna's "The Ear" (1970) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Second Run. The supplemental features on the disc include filmed introduction by Peter Hames; audio commentary by Mike White, Ben Buckingham, and Martin Kessler; and Vlastimil Venclík's short "The Uninvited Guest". Also included with this release is a 20-page illustrated booklet featuring writing on the film by Peter Hames, author and producer Steven Jay Schneider and journalist and critic Graham Williamson, as well as technical credits. In Czech, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The Ear is listening

Had Karel Kachyna not been connected to some very powerful people from the top echelon of KSC, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, he would not have lived to see his film The Ear officially banned in the early ‘70s. He would have suddenly but permanently disappeared, likely only hours after it was screened to the state censors for approval. Remember, just a few years earlier, during the Prague Spring in 1968, the local communist leaders rolled the red carpet for the Soviets and their thanks crushed the people that had gone on the streets to protest the Party’s dictatorship. So, Kachyna did not get lucky, someone at the very top of the Party simply had the authority to let him live. (There is a good filmed introduction by Peter Hames on this disc in which he confirms this exact scenario. See it).

There are a couple of flashbacks that make it easier to put a few important details in the proper context but even without them, everything makes perfect sense. Also, the surprising twist at the very end is anything but surprising -- there is simple, rock-solid logic behind it, and anyone that knew how the communist machine operated will see it coming halfway through the film.

Prague, sometime during the late ‘60s. After attending a lavish state dinner graced by the presence of the Party’s leader, Ludvik (Radoslav Brzobohaty), a senior apparatchik closely working with a high-ranking government official, and his wife Anna (Jirina Bohdalova) return home. They have some trouble locating the key for the front door but after some pointless arguing manage to get in.

It is when Ludvik and Anna’s real misery begins.

They immediately realize that for some reason their home was left unlocked and then discover that its electrical system is turned off. Their phone has gone dead as well. At first, Ludvik becomes upset by Anna’s obvious alcohol-driven overreacting but quickly becomes concerned and eventually panics. While trying to recall every single conversation he and Anna had at the reception Ludvik then realizes that their home is being monitored by secret agents hiding in the thick dark shadows across the street and that it is perhaps only a matter of time before they ring the doorbell and take him away. A thorough search of their home also produces about a dozen ‘bugs’, the exact type that The Ear always uses to spy and collect information on those it considers to be enemies of the state.

By the early morning hours, Ludvik and Anna conclude that there is nothing they can do to avoid what is coming to them, so they decide to spend their final hours wrapped in quilts on the balcony, remembering some of the best times they had as a couple over the years. Not too long after that, however, The Ear activates their phone again, requests to speak with Ludvik, and casually makes a most unexpected announcement.

The nerve-wracking tension and sense of paranoia that provide the structure of the film are second to none. (For reference, The Lives of Others, while an excellent film, actually offers a far less convincing slice of the maddening reality the communists imposed on the Eastern European countries). This is exactly the type of existence that people on the other side of the Iron Curtain had to learn to tolerate if they were to have a chance to grow older. The Ear entered their lives and became a permanent part of them, and then ensured that anyone that dared to question the Party and its regime was weeded out as quickly as possible.

What almost certainly sealed the fate of this film, however, is a different kind of revelation. It is that The Ear did not discriminate and just as easily penetrated the lives of the many people that made its existence possible. More importantly, this exact practice was part of a trusted blueprint that supplied the reliable cadre of state officials the Party needed to remain in power. Because The Ear had evidence that all of them were in some way compromised, it was in their best interest to support each other and the Party. It is how The Ear became the foundation of the communist state and for decades managed to protect it.

The two leads are astonishing. Their performances utilize the perfect blend of fear, anger, and pure desperation, which is why the gradual nervous breakdown of their miserable characters looks so authentic. An absolutely riveting film.

The Ear Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.37:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Karel Kachyna's The Ear arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Second Run.

Even though the current master could have been cleaned up a bit more, I like it a lot. In fact, I like it more than the recent 4K restoration of Ikarie XB 1. Here's why: It has a very strong organic appearance and when projected the film basically looks as it should if it was screened in a theater. Yes, there are a few tiny white dots that pop up here and there, and yes there are some small vertical lines that could have been erased with digital tools. There are even a few larger black marks of the type that can be spotted on Diamonds of the Night. But these are cosmetic imperfections that do not bother me at all. There is a lot more that I like -- a lot. For example, plenty of the film is shot in the dark and the footage boasts some very nice organic nuances. Depth and clarity are very pleasing as well. I even think that the grading job is more convincing than the one that was done for Ikarie XB 1, though the flashbacks could have used some additional rebalancing work. All in all, this new Blu-ray release offers quite an upgrade in quality over the old DVD release of The Ear that Second Run produced more than a decade ago. My score is 4.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

The Ear Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: Czech LPCM 2.0 (with a few random lines in Russian). Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature.

You should not expect to hear an impressive range of dynamic contrasts. There is a bit of music that is heard during the big party but the soundtrack is flooded with various uneven organic sounds and noises. The exchanges between the the two leads are clear and very easy to follow. In other words, the lossless track replicates the native qualities of the original soundtrack very well.

The Ear Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

NOTE: All of the supplemental features on this Blu-ray release are perfectly playable on North American Blu-ray players, including the PS3.

• Introduction by Peter Hames - in this video piece, Peter Hames discusses the socio-political environment in which The Ear emerged, its banning by the communist government in Czechoslovakia, and the career of the film's creator, Karel Kachyna. In English, not subtitled. (13 min, 1080p).

• The Projection Booth Commentary - this audio commentary was recorded by Mike White, Ben Buckingham, and Martin Kessler.

• The Uninvited Guest - this short film was directed by Vlastimil Venclík in 1969. A man and his wife find themselves strangers in their apartment after a few 'comrades' move in and begin 'sharing' their food and personal possessions. In Czech, with optional English subtitles. (23 min, 1080p).

• Booklet - 20-page illustrated booklet featuring writing on the film by Peter Hames, author and producer Steven Jay Schneider and journalist and critic Graham Williamson, as well as technical credits.

The Ear Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I was quite surprised to learn that there were shocked people after it was finally made public that Google and the communist government of China are working together to complete the latter's high-tech surveillance network. (See reports here and here). It is hardly a shocking revelation. The two parties are using the same old playbook that the Soviets and then their lackeys in Eastern Europe did during the Cold War era to enhance and preserve their totalitarian regime. In this wired world that we live in they have to update a few things because technology has evolved rather dramatically, but the goal remains the same: total censorship and control of the masses.

Karel Kachyna's film will take you back to the old days when eavesdropping and intimidation were done with 'bugs' and secret agents pretending to be your best friends. This was the Golden Era of The Ear. I like this film a lot not because it reveals some earth-shattering truths about the communists and their tactics, but because it perfectly recreates the maddening reality they imposed on everyone, including themselves. It is a genuine stunner, undoubtedly one of the very best to emerge from the now-defunct Czechoslovakia. Second Run's release, which I consider the best 'import' to reach my desk this year, is sourced from a very nice remaster and is Region-Free. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.