Opening with a blend of orchestral beauty and vague pangs of Kool & The Gang, Tomorrow I’ll Wake Up and Scald Myself with Tea, from director Jindřich Polák, shows off its frivolous, light-hearted antics immediately. Pairing this high quality, era-defining funk with reversed and repetitive footage of soulless vermin Adolf Hitler, the immediate juxtaposition makes for a great hook into what is, frankly, one of the great forgotten science fiction flicks of the 20th century. There are many and a braver man than I will be necessary to sift through that ever-growing pile, but we can take respite in Tomorrow I’ll Wake Up and Scald Myself with Tea. A film which provides a blurring of historical horrors and futuristic cliché. A fantastic, vicious attack on the modern age of serious science fiction.
Poking fun at the inevitable mundanity of time travel by presenting it as a package holiday, Tomorrow I’ll Wake Up and Scald Myself with Tea has a wry smile and a twinkle to its eye as it wanders through a subway station, decked out to take passengers to different eras of history. Subliminal assaults on the humdrum lifestyle of living life with the edges sanded off, taking the oddities for granted. This theme crops up time and time again with Polák’s exceptional direction allowing the world design to wash over you. He provides numerous moments of sheer brilliance – from the detailed and well-styled set design to the special effects and tight utilisation of prop work – he presents a film of real, exceptional artistry. Managing the pacing and time well, audiences are left with a charming, endearingly good film that toys with the timelines of time travel and all the oddities that are bound to crop up in a series of confusing conundrums.
Composer Karel Svobodo is the key to pulling it all together, though, his mesmerizingly great score paces the beats and brutality nicely, the horror in the humour, and the humour in the hounds of history’s villains.
tomorrow i’ll wake up and scold myself with tea
Crucially, though, the film is funny. Very funny, in fact. Manic characters are compelled to make truly irreverent decisions, the style of which Polák captures beautifully. Leading man Petr Kostka is not the hero these troubling times need, and if it weren’t for his exceptional dialogue, he would come across as a bumbling, lovable lead. Think Monsieur Hulot but with the fate of the world resting on his shoulders. A dual role that leaves the safety of the world in the hands of a man in over his head, Kostka gives a marvellous leading performance. In the modern age this double role style is nothing new, but for the manner and tone Tomorrow I’ll Wake Up and Scald Myself with Tea takes, it is fresh, inviting, and frequently impressive.
For those seeking out bonus features, Second Run offer slim pickings in the on-disc extras. Forgivable, considering the magnificent touch-up they bring to Polák’s feature. Reworked subtitles are the main draw, paired nicely with a delightful mastering of the film. As expected, the attention to detail and hard work serves them well, as does the marvellous booklet written by our very own Graham Williamson. The sixteen-page essay is page-turning brilliance, an engaging breakdown of the science fiction culture of the 60s and 70s.
Tomorrow I’ll Wake Up and Scald Myself with Tea, aside from being a mouthful and a half to pronounce, is a compelling science fiction comedy. It provides out-there stories, a manic sense of glee underlying them all. Composer Karel Svobodo is the key to pulling it all together, his mesmerizing soundtrack paces the beats and brutality nicely, the horror in the humour coming through with superb precision. Concise and compact, a great bit of comedy pulls itself together with rewarding results, all thanks to a cast that find themselves spiralling through various states of disarray.
TOMORROW I’LL WAKE UP AND SCALD MYSELF WITH TEA IS OUT ON SECOND RUN BLU-RAY & DVD
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Thank you for reading Ewan’s Review of Tomorrow I’ll wake up and scald myself with Tea
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