Written by Pawel Pawlikowski, Janusz Glowacki and Piotr Borkowski
Starring Joanna Kulig, Tomasz Kot, Borys Szyc, Agata Kulesza, Cedric Kahn and Jeanne Balibar
Poland, France, United Kingdom, 2018
In post WWII Poland, a musician is working with a crew to record and archive the rural folk songs of the region, and put together a singing and dancing folk music troupe made up of locals. One of the young women who auditions sticks out from the rest, partly because she's only posing as a country girl to escape her troubled past in the city, and partly because the musician is falling in love with her.
The two begin a romance, and as the folk ensemble gains popularity and gets chances to play East Berlin, it also draws the attention of the government, who want to use it as a pro-Stalin, pro-communist propaganda tool. Under increasing pressure, the musician arranges to escape with his love across the border to freedom -- but when it comes time, she doesn't show.
The rest of the film follows the two as they come into and out of each others lives, always drawn back together because of their love but kept apart because of the state of the world.
Thematically the film sort of reminded me of PHOENIX, also about how WWII destroyed people's families and relationships, and how the echoes of that destruction continued even after the war was "won." Of course, that movie's more of a thriller and this one's straight up drama.
The most striking thing about the movie is the beautiful black and white photography. Pawlikowski could probably make a movie about anything and as long as he shot it this way, I'd still like it.
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