Život a doba soudce A. K.

In ancient times of socialist Czechoslovakia, TV series were a showcase of television production and created a phenomenon that determined the satisfaction of viewers. Since then, there has been an effort by television managers to succeed in the field of original television series production, and with The Life and Times of Judge A. K., it is evident how ambitious the goal was to create a series that would please both the audience and critics hungry for artistic reflection of today's morally divided era. Through its protagonist, the series aims to raise questions and delve into painful moral dilemmas. I cannot assess the professional aspect of the project, that is, to what extent the discussed legal cases correspond to existing legislation. As for everything else, David Švehlík excels and portrays a charismatic protagonist, with whom viewers will likely have no trouble identifying given his human judgments and professional rulings. The series functions quite decently based on individual court cases – typologically characteristic cases that, although lacking depth or rather pretending to have depth, are still considered solidly above average compared to commercial series of competing television stations within the framework of the game in the small country. However, I am accustomed to comparing Czech productions with unconventional works from world television, and the gap is still enormous. The series does not captivate and is up to his ears in entrenched schemes and conventions. The character's inner monologues are somewhat literary and pedagogical, his personal life and problems bore me, and when I skipped two episodes, nothing attracted me to watch them online. It is not a fundamental series for me, although some of the problems and topics are serious. Overall impression: 55%. (2014.11.04)