Lajka (in English: ''Laika'') is a 2017 Czech

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

animated film Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

. It is inspired by Soviet space dog

Laika Laika ( ; , ; – 3 November 1957) was a Soviet space dog who was one of the first animals in space and the first to orbit the Earth. A stray mongrel from the streets of Moscow, she flew aboard the Sputnik 2 spacecraft, launched into lo ...

Plot

In the Soviet town of

Baikonur Baikonur ( ; ) is a city in Kazakhstan on the northern bank of the Syr Darya river. It is currently leased and administered by the Russian Federation as an enclave until 2050. It was constructed to serve the Baikonur Cosmodrome with adminis ...

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

, a female stray dog is captured while scavenging for food to feed her puppies. She is named Laika and brought to the local spaceport. Professor Voroljov and his assistant Kokotov begin preparing Laika for space travel. On the day before the launch, Laika manages to get out of her cage and visits the space rocket. Then she returns for her puppies and smuggles them into the rocket. The following day she is launched into space along with her pups hidden in the rocket. The news of Laika's travel to space arrive to the United States. The Americans, in response, send a chimpanzee named

Ham Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in '' Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term '' ...

to space. Ham is soon followed by other rockets with various animals. All rockets arrive at a planet named Qem. They meet the natives of the planet and are accompanied by a native named Quirkrk. The animals are happy in the new environment as there are no humans. The Soviets however soon send cosmonaut Jurij Levobočkin to space. He is initially sent to the Moon but arrives at Qem instead. He then meets Lajka, and settles down, but soon begins craving meat. Qem's natives soon go missing; it is revealed that Levobočkin invented a "freezer gun" and is hunting and eating them. Laika and Ham are fighting him just as he is about to bake Quirkrk. The clash ends when Levobočkin falls into the furnace, and the animals leave. Levobočkin, however, survives, now wanting revenge, and the animals prepare for battle against him. The American astronaut Neil Knokaut arrives and eventually joins Levobočkin in hunting. Laika outsmarts them and Levobočkin and Knokaut freeze each other.

Voice actors

* Helena Dvořáková as

Karel Zima Karel may refer to: People * Karel (given name) * Karel (surname) * Charles Karel Bouley (born 1962), American talk radio personality known on air as Karel * Christiaan Karel Appel (1921–2006), Dutch painter and sculptor Business * Karel Elec ...

as Jurij Levobočkin *

Petr Čtvrtníček Petr Čtvrtníček (born 5 April 1964 in Prague) is a Czechs, Czech actor and comedian. Selected filmography * ''Kouř'' (1991) * ''Fany'' (1995) * ''Tomík'' (1997) * ''Mazaný Filip'' (2003) * ''Ivánku, kamaráde, můžeš mluvit? aneb Tak t ...

as Quirkrk *

Jan Vondráček Jan Vondráček (born 16 August 1966 in Prague) is a Czech actor and dubber. He starred in the film '' Operace Silver A'' under director Jiří Strach in 2007. Since 9 January 2023, he has been the voice announcer for Trams in Prague, as part of ...

Miroslav Táborský Miroslav Táborský (born 9 November 1959 in Prague, Czechoslovakia) is a Czech actor who has appeared in Czech television series, as well as in American films. Táborský studied physics at the University of Hradec Králové, and then graduated ...

as Neil Knokaut * Robert Nebřenský as Professor Voroljov *

Jan Budař Jan Budař (born 31 July 1977) is a Czech actor, director, singer, composer and script writer. Biography Budař was born in Frýdlant near Liberec. He graduated from the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts (JAMU) in Brno in 2000. He ...

as Assistant Kokotov

Awards

* 2017 Czech Lion Awards, Stage Design category winner

References

External links

*
Lajka.eu
- official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Lajka 2017 films 2010s Czech-language films 2010s science fiction comedy films Czech animated science fiction films Czech science fiction comedy films Czech Lion Awards winners (films) Czech animated comedy films Czech animated musical films Animated films set in the Soviet Union Films set in Kazakhstan Films set in 1957 Cold War films Animated films about dogs Animated films about apes Animated films about monkeys Films about extraterrestrial life Animated films set in the 1950s Animated films set in Asia

Plot

Voice actors

Awards

See also

References

External links