A bit like an Eastern European version of one of those sprawling, cinematic canvases by Robert Altman or Paul Thomas Anderson, Up And Down is a darkly (very darkly) comic cross-section of contemporary Prague.
Czech director Jan Hrebejk (Divided We Fall) and co-writer Petr Jarchovsky tackle some very big issues (to name a few: race, class and the precariousness of comfort zones) while weaving together the lives of petty crooks, professors, social workers, soccer hooligans, incipient fascists and abandoned children of all ages. The principal stories revolve around a barren woman (Natasa Burger) who buys an illegal immigrant's baby at a pawnshop, and a very awkward family reunion in which an estranged son (Petr Forman, son of director Milos) returns home for the first time in 20 years, only to find a place as crushingly familiar as it is utterly changed. The movie has a tendency to cram itself with too many characters, too many themes and too much story for a mere 103 minutes, but it's exciting watching it try to make it all work. Up And Down isn't perfect, but it's a fascinating film, equally effective as comedy and as tragedy. Also stars Jiri Machacek, Jan Triska, Emilia Vasaryova and Ingrid Timkova.
Up And Down (PG-13) opens May 20 at Sunrise Cinemas in Tampa. Call 813-258-4646 to confirm. 
-Lance Goldenberg
This article appears in May 18-24, 2005.