Following Falešná kočička, we continue with the second of the three comedies starring Vlasta Burian and Zdena Kavková, written by Josef Skružný and directed by Svatopluk Innemann. Of the trio, this is, in my opinion, the weakest: too caricatural, often incoherent, and structured as if it had been conceived for episodic release.

Kačenka Strnadová (Zdena Kavková) is a clumsy country girl living under the authority of her uncle (Rudolf Sůva), a farm steward and innkeeper. Fed up with her blunders, he decides to toughen her up by sending her to Prague to find work. She is joined by her childhood sweetheart Vincek Kroutil (Vlasta Burian), a strong but somewhat dim-witted fellow. In Prague, Kačenka gradually matures, even though she has to switch jobs several times. She becomes involved with Engineer Richard Romanovský (Jiří Sedláček), wealthy and educated, who manages to charm her and push Vincek aside. But appearances deceive: while Vincek, hoping to win Kačenka back, sets out to capture a notorious gang of thieves, it turns out that their elusive leader is none other than Romanovský in disguise. When Kačenka learns the truth, she rejects him and realizes her love for Vincek—who, despairing, has resolved to take his own life after giving her the bounty for the gang’s capture. In the (partially missing) ending, Kačenka arrives just in time to stop him and confess her feelings.

The film feels like a patchwork of episodes, with a string of repetitive situations in which Kačenka or Vincek try out new jobs and inevitably make a mess of things. Over time, however, both grow more confident, especially Kačenka, who evolves far from the awkward country girl introduced at the start. A delightful curiosity is Innemann’s own cameo in a playful, meta-cinematic scene where Kačenka, working as a servant to a movie star, ends up on set with the director himself.

Despite the characters’ psychological growth, the story left me unconvinced—particularly the crime subplot, which mimics the Fantômas-style serials but never fully exploits the potential of its premise. What does stand out are the costumes: as in the other two films of the series, they are carefully designed, with Kačenka’s wardrobe changing noticeably with each new job. Interestingly, while the film is the weakest of the trilogy, I found myself appreciating Vlasta Burian’s performance the most here. His Vincek, though naïve and laughable at times, is a genuinely tender figure who grows more mature over the course of the story.

Lásky Kačenky Strnadové is a light and amusing comedy, weakened by its fragmented narrative and repetitive situations. Still, for those curious, the film is available on DVD at a fairly modest price.

This article was originally published in Italian on emutofu.com