Mr. Kneff

Story

Synopsis

Kafka, which “morphed” into Mr. Kneff, a story set in Prague in 1919 about a writer, whose miserable job provided him with literary inspiration. The new cut is twenty minutes shorter and Soderbergh also rearranged the narrative structure and coloured certain scenes to make a clearer distinction between reality and the protagonist’s imagination. The dialogues were replaced by subtitles; the music was also altered, incorporating, among others, the instrumental version of Metallica’s song “Enter Sandman”. Mr. Kneff, arguably a film about Kafka, but now without Kafka, in comparison with the original is thus noticeably estranged and more surreal.

Director

Steven Soderbergh

Writers

Alfred Polly

Language

English

Country

Czech Republic, France

Release date

29 September 2026

Ensemble

Cast

• 

  Jeremy Irons

  Kneff

• 

  Theresa Russell