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Burglar and Umbrella

Name: Burglar and Umbrella
Director: Jiří Sequens
Released: 1971
Duration: 93 min

Representation Score

2.7/10

Limited

1971

Director

Jiří Sequens

Runtime

93 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

This crime drama prioritizes noir aesthetics and character-driven tragedy over modern approaches that consider multiple aspects of identity. The narrative structure remains traditional in its demographic composition, focusing heavily on interpersonal conflicts centered around heterosexual relationships. While the film offers a complex look at a woman navigating the fringes of society, it lacks ethnic or LGBTQ+ diversity. The setting and cast reflect the historical homogeneity of 1971 Eastern Europe.

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Category Breakdown

Does Burglar and Umbrella have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The story focuses on heterosexual relationships between Anna and her male partners, Toufar and Penicka, without any queer subtext.

How does Burglar and Umbrella portray gender?

Fair

Anna is a central figure whose personal choices drive the investigation. While she plays a significant role, her character remains tied to traditional archetypes like the tragic woman or femme fatale.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Burglar and Umbrella?

Minimal

The film depicts a culturally homogeneous Czechoslovakian society. Set in 1971 Prague, the cast and setting reflect the era's lack of ethnic pluralism.

How does Burglar and Umbrella represent religion and culture?

Fair

The narrative explores social exclusion and the breakdown of domestic stability. It uses the criminal underworld to critique social stability through the lens of human desperation.

Does Burglar and Umbrella include disability representation?

Minimal

There are no visible or invisible disabilities central to the character arcs or plot development in this narrative.

Present on Screen

Provides a nuanced, non-passive portrayal of a female protagonist navigating a criminal underworld.
Explores themes of social exclusion and the fragility of domestic stability.

Limited or Absent

Lacks racial and ethnic pluralism, reflecting a very homogeneous social setting.
The narrative is strictly oriented toward heterosexual relationships with no representation of LGBTQ+ identities.
women's ability to drive the story is heavily tied to sexual labor and relationships with men.

Official Synopsis

In the morning twilight of Prague, the dead body of the safe-breaker Toufar is found floating on the river Vltava with a knife in his back. Police inspectors visit Toufar's lover, the prostitute Anna Kulatá (Jirina Bohdalová), nicknamed Umbrella, and it is apparent that the moment before she opened the door of her flat, someone fled through the window. Umbrella is summoned for examination to the head of the criminal police - Police Councilman Vacátko Jaroslav Marvan, but although shocked by the photograph of the dead man, she does not confess to anything. Before Toufar, Umbrella lived with the safe-breaker Penicka (Radoslav Brzobohatý), who loved her very much and made her quit her street trade. But when he was sentenced to three years' imprisonment, Umbrella began to live with the brute Toufar, who chased her to street again. In the case of the murder, Penicka is therefore the prime suspect.

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