Atentat
Encyclopedia
Atentát is a 1964
black-and-white Czech film directed by Jiří Sequens
. The World War II
story depicts events before and after the assassination of top German
leader Reinhard Heydrich
in Prague
(Operation Anthropoid
).
, one of the most feared top officials of the Nazi Party, an architect of the Holocaust
and Hitler's possible successor, is appointed "Reichsprotektor" of Bohemia and Moravia
. As a result of his brutality and oppression he is also called "The Butcher of Prague" or "The Blond Beast".
A squad of agents is selected, trained and then parachuted into Czechoslovakia
. The team operated in Prague and planned the attack for about six months. The mission, Operation Anthropoid
, is successfully executed in the capital on May 27, 1942 by means of an ambush, but almost fails at a crucial moment when one of their Sten
guns jams and they are obliged to use a grenade instead. Heydrich eventually succumbs to his wounds, but during the frenzied aftermath, the group is betrayed by one of its members and they are cornered in a church crypt in Prague. In the gun-battle that follows, all but two of the agents are killed. The remaining ones commit suicide. The German high command takes savage reprisals, including the massacre of 340 men, women and children from the village of Lidice
and the razing of the village.
1964 in film
The year 1964 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 29 - The film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb is released....
black-and-white Czech film directed by Jiří Sequens
Jirí Sequens
-Life:Sequens was born in Brno. After the Second World War, he went to Moscow where he studied film techniques. When he returned to Czechoslovakia he worked for Czechoslovak movie industry.Sequens was an author of the propagandistic Czech movies/tv series....
. The World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
story depicts events before and after the assassination of top German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
leader Reinhard Heydrich
Reinhard Heydrich
Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich , also known as The Hangman, was a high-ranking German Nazi official.He was SS-Obergruppenführer and General der Polizei, chief of the Reich Main Security Office and Stellvertretender Reichsprotektor of Bohemia and Moravia...
in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
(Operation Anthropoid
Operation Anthropoid
Operation Anthropoid was the code name for the targeted killing of top German SS leader Reinhard Heydrich. He was the chief of the Reich Main Security Office , the acting Protector of Bohemia and Moravia, and a chief planner of the Final Solution, the Nazi German programme for the genocide of the...
).
Synopsis
On September 27, 1941, Reinhard HeydrichReinhard Heydrich
Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich , also known as The Hangman, was a high-ranking German Nazi official.He was SS-Obergruppenführer and General der Polizei, chief of the Reich Main Security Office and Stellvertretender Reichsprotektor of Bohemia and Moravia...
, one of the most feared top officials of the Nazi Party, an architect of the Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
and Hitler's possible successor, is appointed "Reichsprotektor" of Bohemia and Moravia
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was the majority ethnic-Czech protectorate which Nazi Germany established in the central parts of Bohemia, Moravia and Czech Silesia in what is today the Czech Republic...
. As a result of his brutality and oppression he is also called "The Butcher of Prague" or "The Blond Beast".
A squad of agents is selected, trained and then parachuted into Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. The team operated in Prague and planned the attack for about six months. The mission, Operation Anthropoid
Operation Anthropoid
Operation Anthropoid was the code name for the targeted killing of top German SS leader Reinhard Heydrich. He was the chief of the Reich Main Security Office , the acting Protector of Bohemia and Moravia, and a chief planner of the Final Solution, the Nazi German programme for the genocide of the...
, is successfully executed in the capital on May 27, 1942 by means of an ambush, but almost fails at a crucial moment when one of their Sten
Sten
The STEN was a family of British 9 mm submachine guns used extensively by British and Commonwealth forces throughout World War II and the Korean War...
guns jams and they are obliged to use a grenade instead. Heydrich eventually succumbs to his wounds, but during the frenzied aftermath, the group is betrayed by one of its members and they are cornered in a church crypt in Prague. In the gun-battle that follows, all but two of the agents are killed. The remaining ones commit suicide. The German high command takes savage reprisals, including the massacre of 340 men, women and children from the village of Lidice
Lidice
Lidice is a village in the Czech Republic just northwest of Prague. It is built on the site of a previous village of the same name which, as part of the Nazi Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, was on orders from Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler, completely destroyed by German forces in reprisal...
and the razing of the village.
Cast
- Radoslav BrzobohatýRadoslav BrzobohatýRadoslav Brzobohatý is a Czech film and television actor. He has played in many Czech TV shows including 30 Cases of Major Zeman, Ulice and the film Sněženky a machři...
- 1st Lt. Král - Ludek MunzarLuděk MunzarLuděk Munzar is a Czech actor. He starred in the film Poslední propadne peklu under director Ludvík Ráža in 1982.-References:...
- 1st Lt . Sedlák - Ladislav Mrkvicka - Serg. Vyskocil
- Rudolf Jelínek - Serg. Strnad
- Jirí Kodet - Serg. Tousek
- Josef Vinklár - Serg. Vrbas
See also
Articles on related films- Hangmen Also Die! (1943)
- Hitler's MadmanHitler's MadmanHitler's Madman is a 1943 World War II film about the assassination of Nazi Reinhard Heydrich and the revenge taken by the Germans. It was produced by Seymour Nebenzal for PRC and Angelus Pictures, Inc. The shooting of Hitler's Madman took place late in 1942 and early 1943...
(1943) - The Silent VillageThe Silent VillageThe Silent Village is a 1943 British propaganda short film in the form of a drama documentary, made by the Crown Film Unit and directed by Humphrey Jennings...
(1943) - Operation DaybreakOperation DaybreakOperation Daybreak is a 1975 World War II film based on the true story of the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich in Prague - starring Anthony Andrews, Timothy Bottoms and Martin Shaw. It was directed by Lewis Gilbert and shot mostly on location in Prague. It was adapted from the book Seven Men...
(1975)