The Occupation of Czechoslovakia During World War 2

Closely Watched Trains captures the zeitgeist of Czechoslovakia while it was occupied by Germany during World War II. The film’s comedic yet melodramtic mood creates an image of the Czech people as having lost their spirit. The focus on the young protagonist Milos parallels the wartime experience of Eastern Europeans during the german occupation a patriotic gesture epitomized by Milo wearing his cap while sleeping with Masa and wears it wehn he’s sleeping. His cap could also be a metaphor for how the Nazis wanted theCzechs to be submissiveand just do their assigned work. Milo wants to blindly follow his father and grandfather. This seems accurate as Germany relied on the Czech people to work to fuel the war, highlighted by the train engineer stating the train is on a tight scheduleHe follows in his father’s footsteps and has a job that isn’t labor-intensive and is ironically proud of his father and grandfather who also did little work.

Like many Eastern Europeans during German occupation, Milos is unable to remove himself from the war. He is content being a train-watcher in his small town but eventually finds himself recruited in a plot to destroy a Nazi ammunition train. Similarly, many Czechs could not escape the German influence that pervaded Czechoslavakia under German occupation. He seems reserved and tries avoiding discussing his feelings about women. Yugoslavia occupied in 1941. Milos drops the bomb on the train not out of patriotism but out of his newfound empowerment after his encounter with Viktoria. Which seems reasonable given the film’s focus on young Milo and the horrors of World War II in the periphery. His role in the plot to destroy the Nazi train serves. As a way to feel like a man parallels Czechoslavia’s failed. Attempts to fight off German influence as their societal progress was retarded by the Germans. He successfully destroys the train but fails to survive, suggesting war conquers all. Milos being shot by a Nazi soldier even though the soldier doesn’t see the bomb parallels the total war the Germans operated under as they murdered innocent Czech citizens. Much as Milos fails to have sex with Masa because of prematurely ejaculating. Czechoslavia failed to defend itself from Germany’s advances. His premature ejaculation could parallel the anxiety of Eastern Europeans waiting for the war to be over. Like the youthful, innocent Milos, Eastern Europeans were unfairly subjugated under the Nazis. The film shows how one young boy is affected by the war. Which suggests that members of Eastern European society as a whole could not have escaped if even one young boy could not.

Cite this page