Film "A Limousine the Colour of Midsummer's Eve", 1981, by Director Jānis Streičs (1936)

The plot is not an elaborate one. Mirta Saknīte (Lilita Bērziņa (1903−1983)), an old lady living in the countryside in Vidzeme, wins a car in the lottery. Cars were very hard to get in the USSR, and various greedy relatives who have not been seen for years arrive on her doorstep to try and gain her affection.

First to appear are the Tūters family: stuck-up teacher Dagnija (Olga Dreģe (1938)), her henpecked husband Ēriks (Uldis Dumpis (1943)) and spoiled teenage son Uģis (Gundars Āboliņš (1960)). Then competition arrives in the form of the Sprēsliņš clan: practical, energetic Viktors (Boļeslavs Ružs (1928−2000)), his obsequious wife Olita (Baiba Indriksone (1932)) and their daughter, the scheming beauty Lāsma (Diāna Zande (1964)). Mirta’s neighbours the Gilucis couple – hardworking collective farm harvester driver Jāzeps (Romualds Ancāns (1944−2011)) and his loyal wife Veronika (Līga Liepiņa (1946)) – are more positive characters.

Chaos unfolds around Mirta, and in the far-from-perfect private worlds of the protagonists. Although some have said that the main characters appear to be very negative, perhaps one of the keys to the film’s appeal is its unvarnished, honest take on human nature, leavened by laughter.

For many years, “A Limousine the Colour of Midsummer’s Eve” has been shown on television during Jāņi (Midsummer) holidays, and its dialogue has contributed many phrases to the Latvian language. The “Bieki” farm near Cēsis where it was filmed is a tourist attraction. Regarding its legendary status, director Streičs has said: “It’s not my film anymore – the people have taken it and nationalised it.”

In 2008, it was the first Latvian film to be digitalised by the National Film Centre of Latvia, and it is available on DVD and online.

Filips Birzulis

You can watch the film online for free within Latvia on the portal www.filmas.lv or at the Audiovisual Reading Room at the National Library of Latvia.