R | 6 episodes | Drama, Thriller | Aug. 25, 2022 (USA)
Big Hollywood blockbusters like “Casino Royale” and “The Bourne Identity” were filmed at Prague’s Barrandov Studios, but didactic propaganda films were also made there, during the German occupation and under the Communist regime.
The history of the studio and its founder, Milos Havel (the great playwright and former president’s uncle) are both quite complicated, but they lend themselves to some grand historical drama in the six-part “Private Lives,” which premieres on Aug. 25.
Thanks to the policy of appeasement, the then Czechoslovakia was left to face Germany on its own. However, the Germans consider Czech Bohemia to be relatively pure-of-blood and closely akin to their great Teutonic race. Therefore, they promise Czechoslovakia a benign occupation, in exchange for their cooperation….