Happy End (1966 film)


Happy End is a 1966 Czechoslovak comedy film directed by Oldřich Lipský. Theodor Pištěk designed the costumes for the film. The film is told backwards, beginning with the protagonist's death and ending with his birth.

Plot

Happy end tells the life story of a butcher named Bedřich Frydrych; however, it is told entirely in reverse, giving rise to a different story than the one a forward-flowing narrative would depict. It thus begins with Bedřich's birth, followed by a childhood spent in school, whereupon he sets out into the world and soon marries, although he has to assemble his wife-to-be from various parts.
The reversed chronology also applies to dialogue: lines are read in an ostensibly reversed order, variously resulting in sheer situational comedy and dada.

Cast