focus on films from Poland

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Ashes and Diamonds Andrzej Wajda's adaptation of Jerzy Andrzejewski classic novel comprises the third part of the director's World War II trilogy. Set in the immediate postwar era of 1945, the film stars Zbigniew Cybulski as Maciek Chelmicki, a gunman for the Polish underground. When he and another operative, Andrzej (Adam Pawlikowski), ambush a jeep in…    more      Bad Luck The formative years of a Polish man forms the backbone of the story in this fictional tale from director Andrzej Munk. His major character flaw is that he doesn't have any form of consciousness, leading him to feel alienated and alone in society. Early adulthood sees him fall in love, become accidentally embroiled in extreme right-wing…    more      Beautiful Stranger A lieutenant in Russia in 1916 impresses his superiors by standing up to the antics of Rasputin at a restaurant. As reward he is entrusted with a mission to carry vital documents to Stockholm, but en route he falls in love with a beautiful spy…    more      Big Shar In this Polish caper film starring Jan Nowicki, an experienced gambler past his prime forms an unlikely alliance with a young hustler. In Polish, with subtitles…    more      Blind Chance Acclaimed director Krzysztof Kieslowski presents this sociopolitical drama about life in modern Poland. The story follows Witek (Boguslaw Linda), whose life is played out in three different variations after an insignificant train encounter. In the first version, Witek catches the train, meets a sincere communist, and becomes a party activist…    more      Border Street An old tailor tries to save his daughters and others from the Nazis. The film culminates with the Jews joining the Warsaw Uprising of 1943…    more