Polish Cinema Gems

During the second half of the 20th century, a talented and thirsty generation of creators jumps out of Poland making their national film-making one of the most exciting in Europe. The loosening of the Stalinist domination in 1956 favors the emergence of the Polish Film School, a new restless trend which wishes to debunk the traditional idea of heroism and deconstruct the vain patriotism that monopolized Polish cinema in the past.

Jerzy Kawalerowicz directs «Night Train», a real technical achievement of its time, Jerzy Skolimowski conceives «Walkover», a melancholic farewell to the youthful carelessness and Roman Polanski delivers his iconic debut «Knife in the Water», securing a glorious career in the West. A few years later, writer and director Tadeusz Konwicki directs «Salto», a mysterious attempt of exploring the deepest aspects of human soul.

In the '80s Krzysztof Zanussi, with «The Constant Factor», contemplates the moral challenges that arise in an ideologically unstable world and Krzysztof Kieslowski, with «No End», deals with loss, exploring timeless issues of the human nature. Spanning four decades, this retrospective tries to present in digitally remastered copies – from the milestones to underestimated masterpieces – a characteristic sample of the Polish cinematic epic, which inspires and influences filmmaking around the world even nowadays. Kostis Theodosopoulos