The Garden is a 1995 Slovak feature film in cooperation with French Artcam International directed by Martin Šulík

Martin Šulík

Martin Šulík is a Slovak film director. He studied film directing at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava from which he graduated in 1986...

. The film is a poetic tale of Jakub, a man in his early 30s. It reflects the relationships and desires of Jakub in the idyllic surroundings of his grandfather's garden.

Plot

Jakub is a daydreamer in his early 30's and is still living with his father. The father is tired of Jakub's idleness and throws him out of the flat. He tells Jakub to sell the old garden of his grandfather and to buy his own flat. Jakub retires into the neglected garden and retreats into the worn garden house from the world and from his problems. The garden turns out to be a magical place full of surprises and mysteries. Jakub stumbles across his grandfather’s journal which is written in reverse script. He finds a map leading him to an old bottle of wine hidden years ago. Now curious Jakub must solve the mysteries of his grandfather’s garden. He meets Helena, a young girl Jakub’s grandfather taught to also write backwards. Strange things happen in the garden, and some of them do indeed seem like miracles. Amid the eccentric events, young Helena teaches Jakub to appreciate the delicate mysteries of life. In the end Jakub loses all his possessions but finds his peace.

Cast

Actor	Role
Marián Labuda Marián Labuda Marián Labuda is a Slovak actor.In 1964 he graduated from the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava . He became member of the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava. In 1967 he moved to the theatre Divadlo na Korze in the same city. Following its closure in 1971 he joined Nová scéna in Bratislava...	Jakub's father
Roman Luknár	Jakub
Zuzana Šulajová Zuzana Šulajová Zuzana Šulajová is a Slovak stage, television and film actress.-Biography:...	Helena
Jana Švandová	Tereza
Katarína Vrzalová	Helena's mother

Reception

The Garden is one of the most recognised films of post communist Slovakia

Slovakia

The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

. It is especially popular in Slovakia and the Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

. It won the special prize of the jury of the Karlovy Vary Film Festival in 1995 and several Czech Lion

Czech Lion

The Czech Lion awards are annual awards that recognize accomplishments in filmmaking and television. It is the highest award of achievement in film awarded in the Czech Republic...

s in 1996.