Production notes

The film gained positive reviews. It received Honorable Mention at 53rd Venice International Film Festival. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 96% based on 25 reviews, with an average score of 7.90/10.

In the Czech Republic, the movie's country of origin, over 1.34 million visitors made the movie one of the most successful movies ever. In Germany more than 624,000 tickets were sold for the film. The film was successful on a limited release in the United States from 24 January 1997 and had taken about $5.73 million by 11 July that year after an opening weekend gross on three screens of $37,795.