I first saw this film back in 1994 when I was ten years old, and I'd completely forgotten it since then. However, when I came across it on TV yesterday, I recognised it after the first tones of the music. So, that's the first point - the music is very good. That is, the parts that aren't played on a synthesiser are very good. (TV budget, you know...)
Now to the more important stuff. The acting is in no way amazing - after all, there isn't much to amaze with. Saturnin (Oldøich Vízner) and Aunt Kateøina (Jana Synková) are well-acted, but the others deliver worse performances. Ondøej Havelka is a good swing musician, but not an actor.
That being said, the film doesn't fail to deliver the humour and athmosphere the book did - only in smaller doses. The editing is abrupt in places (the film was made by cutting down a previously filmed TV series) and some scenes from the book have been omitted or altered (for example, IIRC, Jiøí's heroic jump into the lake is originally in vain, because Doctor Vlach has another key - see the film if you wonder what I'm talking about).
All in all, if you decide to watch this movie, you're in for some good gentle humour; but if you ever happen to come across the book ("Saturnin" by Zdenek Jirotka), grab it and don't let go.
