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Czech Dream |  | Directors: Vít Klusák, Filip Remunda
Studio: Arts Alliance Amer
Category: DVD
List Price: $24.93
Buy Used: $4.13
as of 3/19/2010 21:42 CDT details
You Save: $20.80 (83%)
New (15) Used (12) from $4.13
Seller: sammys-nw-books-and-media
Rating:  7 reviews
Sales Rank: 85155
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 88 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: 8295670399
UPC: 829567039922
EAN: 0829567039922
ASIN: B000LW7LWW
Theatrical Release Date: 2003
Release Date: December 4, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Two students from the Czech Film Academy commission a leading advertising agency to organize a huge campaign for the opening of a new supermarket named Czech Dream. The supermarket however does not exist and is not meant to. The advertising campaign includes radio and television ads, posters, flyers with photos of fake Czech Dream products, a promotional song, an internet site, and ads in newspape |
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Product Description
Two students from the Czech Film Academy commission a leading advertising agency to organize a huge campaign for the opening of a new supermarket named Czech Dream. The supermarket however does not exist and is not meant to. The advertising campaign includes radio and television ads posters flyers with photos of fake Czech Dream products a promotional song an internet site and ads in newspapers and magazines. Will people believe in it and show up for the grand opening?System Requirements:Running Time: 88 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DOCUMENTARIES/MISC. Rating: NR UPC: 829567039922
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 7
 when a mean-spirited prank falls flat September 22, 2009
Roland E. Zwick (Valencia, Ca USA)
The main problem with the documentary "Czech Dream" is that isn't really saying what it thinks it's saying.
In an audacious - I hesitate to use the word "inspired" - act of street theater, Vit Klusak and Filip Remunda, two student filmmakers from the Czech Republic, pulled off a major corporate hoax to serve as the basis for their movie: they deliberately fabricated a phony "hypermarket" (the Eastern European equivalent of Costco or Wal Mart Super Store), built an entire ad campaign around it - replete with billboards, radio and TV spots, an official logo, a catchy theme song and photos of fake merchandise - and then waited around to see just how many "dopes" would show up to their creation on opening day. They even built a makeshift façade to convince people that the store itself actually existed.
One might well ask, "Why do such a thing?" Well, that's a very good question, but the answer the filmmakers provide isn't all that satisfying a one. Essentially, we're told that the purpose of the stunt was to show how easily people can be manipulated into believing something - even something that's not true - simply through the power of advertising. And the movie makers run for moral cover by claiming that the "real" (i.e. higher) purpose for the charade is to convince the Czech people not to fall for all the advertisements encouraging them to join the European Union. Fair enough - especially when one considers that the actual advertisers who agree to go along with the stunt declaim against the unethical nature of lying to customers, all the while justifying their collaboration in the deception by claiming it to be a form of "research" into what does and does not work in advertising. In a way, by allowing themselves to be caught on camera making these comments, these ad men and women are as much dupes of the filmmakers as the poor unsuspecting people who are the primary target of the ruse.
But, in many ways, the satirical arrow not only does not hit its intended target, it ironically zeroes right back around on the very filmmakers who launched it. For it is THEY THEMSELVES and NOT the good-hearted and naturally trusting people who ultimately come off as the unethical and classless ones here, as they proceed to make fools out of perfectly decent people, some of them old and handicapped and forced to travel long distances on foot to get to the spot. And what is all this supposed to prove anyway? That people are "greedy" because they go to the opening of a new supermarket looking for bargains? Or that they're stupid and gullible because they don't suspect that there might not be an actual market even though one has been advertised? Such vigilance would require a level of cynicism that would make it virtually impossible to function in the real world.
No, I'm afraid this smart-alecky, nasty little "stunt" only proves what complete and utter jerks the filmmakers are for making some really nice people feel like idiots. And, indeed many of them, when they finally discover the trick that's been played on them, react with a graciousness and good humor I'm not sure I would be able to muster were I to find myself in their position.
I'm not saying that the movie isn't gripping - somewhat like witnessing a massive traffic accident in action - but, when the dust has finally settled and all the disappointed customers return red-faced and empty-handed to their homes, we can safely declare that they are not the ones who should be feeling ashamed.
 the power of advertising and marketing--even if you don't build it, they will come May 2, 2009
Matthew G. Sherwin (last seen screaming at Amazon customer service)
Czech Dream is a documentary style film produced by two film students in the Czech Republic as their final project before graduating film school. The two young men, Filip Remunda and Vít Klusák, decide to do an experiment: they want to see what will happen when they create the false impression amongst Czech citizens that a major new shopping mall called Czech Dream will open. Will people come and take advantage of bargain prices that are almost ridiculously low? Will they be angry when they discover this was all a hoax? How will the filmmakers get the message out that this non-existent shopping mall (or, hypermarket) is going to open?
When the action starts, we see the film students give a brief introduction and then the film gets right down to business. The film students hire an ad agency that comes up with slick, appealing and manipulative ads for this soon to be opening shopping market with very low prices. Indeed, this hypermarket will be so special that it will be called "Czech Dream" and the film students get a children's chorus and a professional chanteuse to record a moving, passionate song about the mall, equating spending money and getting bargains at shopping malls with people fulfilling their life dreams. In fact, however, all that actually ever gets built is a flimsy storefront banner at the end of a large meadow field--with just some scaffolding behind it to keep the banner in place.
As I'm sure you can imagine, many people show up the morning that the supermarket is supposed to open--almost 2,000 would-be customers are there and the film students even go so far as to pose as managers during a ribbon cutting ceremony. It is only then that the people are able to walk across the meadow to discover that they've been tricked. More bitterness heats up when the people find out that government grant funds were used to pay for the film student's experiment.
I must say that the people who were tricked at the "opening day" event were much more controlled than Americans may have been. Only a couple of men said that they hoped the film students got beaten up; and not even those men touch them--although this could be because the cameras were rolling at the time. The majority of people philosophize that their greed to get something for practically nothing was their major motivator to come to the "opening day ceremony" for this phony hypermarket. They discuss amongst themselves the issue of joining the European Union which was something I did not expect. I also agree with the reviewer who writes that it is not pleasant to watch the elderly and the handicapped walking to the "store" only to discover they've been duped. Not nice.
The DVD doesn't come with any bonus features; I would have liked a commentary or two or perhaps some deleted scenes. However, the film is quite strong on its own and so this is a minor disappointment.
Czech Dream clearly illustrates the human desire to get something for almost nothing; this experiment could happen in any country with essentially the same results. The main difference, I believe, is that in some other countries the people, once they found out that they were tricked and that the money for the experiment was taken from government funds, would have been much angrier and less philosophical about the whole thing. It was somewhat cruel to dupe these people--especially the elderly and the handicapped. These two film students got off comparatively easy.
 fake market place made to confuse consumers February 28, 2008
J. Forst (Farmington Hills, Michigan United States)
The whole point here was that two guys who are in film school create the ultimate hoax using monies from a gov't grant to fool people into going to a shoppingmarket that isn't there. the idea behind this is good but where i think they lost footing was that they created ads w/ real low prices on them so that people would be desperate to go there. If they puto out an ad w/ only pix and no prices I thought that would have proved their purpose alot better. Seeing footage of eldely and handicapped people trugging through a meadow to a fake place isn't exactly a funny moment. The other reviewer here is correct that this seemed to have really stirred up a whole seperate incident of commoners arguing among eachother about "joining the EU or not" where if you're an outsider to the scene you aren't quite sure what all the anger is about. A great idea that had lots of thought but not much explanation.
Not bad.. I like Czech movies - but Amazon could offer better January 22, 2008
D. Sebranek (Oregon)
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
I purchased this DVD from a seller in Canada. I added it to a list of several others - not really knowing what I was getting here. It does give you insight on the Czech political/economic scene, but for actual entertainment value, there are better Czech movies.
My real purpose for watching Czech movies is to learn the langguage better. It is especially helpful when you can watch with subtitles in both Czech and English. This film has both. This is not a movie I would watch over and over, though. Noc na Karlstejne and others are better suited for that.
Loved it January 17, 2008
Kristina Winkler (PDX)
I got this documentary for Christmas (I asked for it, thank god!)not really knowing what to expect. My family and I are all from the Czech Republic and immigrated to the States right after the Velvet Revolution, so I was really curious to see this because we were absent from the country while the huge capitalist change occurred. The drastic change that occurred from 1989 to now is interesting to watch and it's nice to get to see a different view in a country that Americans never get to see. What I really found interesting too was how Czech's current events and main topics were brought up through this whole ordeal. I wasn't expecting people to bring up the topic of becoming apart of the European Union... This documentary is like a little breath of fresh air, it was an awesome idea!
Showing reviews 1-5 of 7
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