Jiří Mádl‘s historical drama Waves (Vlny) has been selected as the Czech Republic’s official entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2025 Academy Awards, the Czech Film and Television Academy (ČFTA) revealed this morning. As per official AMPAS rules, governing bodies from each country may submit only one film to be eligible for Oscar consideration in the Best International Film category.
Waves premiered at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in July and has since been seen by over 350,000 cinemagoers since its release in Czech cinemas on August 15. It will now compete for a nomination for the Best International Film Academy Award against tough competition that includes Cannes Jury Prize winner Emilia Pérez and Irish Sundance hit Kneecap.
The film revisits the events of 1968 during the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia, telling the story of the invasion through the lens of a group of journalists from Czechoslovak Radio’s International Life department, who fought to deliver independent news despite the political climate.
The film’s narrative centers around the fictional protagonist Tomáš, a young man who joins the iconic International Life department after losing his parents, and is now responsible for his younger brother. Unbeknownst to him, the journalists are under close surveillance by the secret services. Tomáš is faced with a moral dilemma—risk his brother’s safety or compromise his own values.
“This handsomely-mounted story from writer-director Jiří Mádl has a tendency to overplay the drama surrounding its fictional central protagonist, but the real-life underpinnings shine through, especially during a thrilling climax as Soviet tanks roll through Prague,” writes The Prague Reporter in its review of Waves.
“Viewers well-versed in Czech history and those completely unfamiliar with the events Waves recounts will both find a lot to like here.”
Voting for the Czech Oscar submission took place from August 30 to September 8, with Waves selected from a pool of 13 Czech feature films. The films Girl America (Amerikánka) and Our Lovely Pig Slaughter (Mord) followed closely behind Waves in the final vote.
The 97th Academy Awards will take place on March 2, 2025, with the official shortlist of 15 international films being announced on Dec. 17, 2024, and the final nominations on Jan. 17, 2025.
Last year, the ČFTA selected Tomáš Mašín‘s Brothers (Bratři) as the country’s Oscar contender, but the film failed to receive an Oscar nomination. To date, only three Czech or Czechoslovak films have won the coveted Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (formerly known as Best Foreign Film): Elmar Klos and Ján Kadár‘s The Shop on Main Street, Jiří Menzel‘s Closely Watched Trains, and Jan Svěrák‘s Kolya.
Other Czech films that have earned Academy Award nominations include Miloš Forman‘s Loves of a Blonde and The Firemen’s Ball, Jiří Menzel‘s My Sweet Little Village, Jan Svěrák‘s Elementary School, Jan Hřebejk‘s Divided We Fall, and Ondřej Trojan‘s Želary. Václav Marhoul‘s The Painted Bird was shortlisted for a nomination in 2019, as was Agnieszka Holland‘s Charlatan in 2020.
One Response
Great movie. Everyone should see