BY MARTIN WOLF> STAFF WRITER

Forty years after he had won an Academy Award for his comedy-drama "Closely Watched Trains," Czech director Jiri Menzel covers familiar ground. His new movie, "I Served the King of England," is a story of a young man before, during and after the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia, with the country's history being intimately connected with the hero's sex life and his career.

Sounds bizarre? You bet. Based on the novel by the famous Czech author Bohumil Hrabal (who also wrote "Closely Watched Trains"), "I Served the King of England" shows the struggle of survivalist Jan Dite over a long period of time, with many flashbacks jumping back and forth through the decades.

The story begins with Jan being released in the 1960s after having spent nearly 15 years in a Communist prison. Recalling his fate, the now old man reflects that "a person becomes a human often against his own will."

Decades ago, the short Jan used to be high-flying waiter. Gifted with a talent for observation and witty ruthlessness (presented with a lot of slapstick), he works his way up from a provincial pub to a top-notch countryside brothel to one of Prague's best restaurants. Always on Jan's mind is his ambition of having his own hotel. Along the way, the sly fox jumps into as many beds as possible, and veteran director Menzel takes the bait, showing as many bare breasts as possible.

The story turns from naughty to nasty once the Nazis occupy Czechoslovakia. Jan (played by Bulgarian actor Ivan Barney) falls in love with Liza, a devoted Nazi party member, played by the German actress Julia Jentsch (known for her role as resistance fighter in the Oscar-nominated drama "Sophie Scholl - The Final Days").

In an awkward scene, Jan and Liza are trying to make love when Liza gets kind of distracted: She is keeping an eye on the Hitler portrait on the wall, while Wagner music is booming in the background.

As his great colleagues Ernst Lubitsch and Charlie Chaplin did in the early '40s, Menzel tries to tackle opportunism and Nazi rituals with humor and sarcasm, and rightfully so (later in the picture, the Communists get their share of jabs, too). But many gags are too obvious and over the top and therefore fall flat, making the nearly two-hour running time a mixed experience. For a more subtle and much funnier approach to a similar topic, get yourself a DVD of Lubitsch's "To Be or Not to Be."

I SERVED THE KING OF ENGLAND

R: sexual content and nudity.

Starring: Ivan Barney, Oldrich Kaiser, Julia Jentsch.

Director: Jiri Menzel.

Running time: 1 hr. 58 min.

Playing: Laemmle Town Center 5, Encino; Laemmle Royal, West Los Angeles; Laemmle Playhouse 7, Pasadena; Regency Theatres South Coast Village, Santa Ana.

In a nutshell: A comedy-drama with a lot of slapstick, combined with a history lesson about an important chapter of World War II and beyond. In Czech with English subtitles.