Freed Polish soldiers are trapped in a small town in Germany during the last days of World War II. After a doctor's daughter is raped by a concentration camp worker, the Poles allow her and her father to stay in the house that is their temporary quarters. While waiting to be repatriated, the war-weary group is forced to fight some German soldiers who invade the town. The war brings out conflicting emotions of the Poles who find themselves trapped in the house and once again under fire from the enemy.
A movie director finds himself in a mid-life crisis
An industrialist's wife announces that she is leaving him, but returns shortly after and tells him that she will only stay with him for appearances. This causes the industrialist to rethink his life choices.
Barbara is a forty-year-old woman of Polish origin living in Budapest. She is a biologist, a wife and a mother. The death of her woman friend opens her eyes to the fact that she is lonely, unable to find her place.
During the Napoleonic wars, a Spanish officer and an opposing officer find a book written by the former's grandfather.
The story follows a young scientist in the contemporary world, who actually came from the world of dwarves, thanks to a magic potion, held by the Big Eater, ruler of the dwarves. The dwarf kingdom, Shuflandia, exists in a cellar of a library, and only the most obedient get the chance to grow to king size and inhabit the larger world. Once there, nobody wants to return to Shuflandia. Also, there are no women in Shuflandia.
The movie is set in Belarus, where a team of counter-intelligence officers is given only three days to find a German radio operator posing as a Soviet soldier, behind soviet lines, on the eve of a major offensive.
A young woman runs away from her home to the big city, gets a job in theatre and gets involved with shady characters.
Two scientists are chosen as guinea pigs for a time experiment: they are placed in hibernation and should be brought back to life after three years. In the meantime, however, World War III breaks out and life has been wiped off the surface of Earth. When they wake up, it turns out that not only 50 years have passed but also that they are the only living specimens of the male sex in a new, underground society composed exclusively of women.
Set in the 19th century Warsaw. The indolence of aristocrats who, secure with their pensions, are too lazy to undertake new business risks, frustrates Wokulski. His ability to make money is respected but his lack of family and social rank is condescended to. Because of his "help" (in secret) to "the doll's" impecunious but influential father, the girl becomes aware of his affection.
Set in the Middle Ages the film tells the story of a wonder child, the little sculptor Wawrzek, who goes to work for a great master, Wit Stwosz. The story culminates in the unveiling of Stwosz's greatest masterpiece, the Altar of St. Mary's Church in Cracow.
Five short stories. (1) “Czas przybliża, czas oddala” – Edward recalls his unfulfilled love for Anna and, years later, writes to her sister Zofia, mistaking her for Anna. (2) “Krąg istnienia” – A girl falls for Wacek at an ice rink; pressured by family, she marries a soap manufacturer. (3) “Paryż 1945” – A Polish refugee soldier and an American woman share a fleeting wartime bond before she leaves at dawn. (4) “Stary profesor” – Two men seek an old professor to fulfill a dying prisoner’s last wish; Roger impersonates a former pupil. (5) “Nauczycielka” – Neglected wife Zofia accepts film tests, only to find the director seeks an ordinary woman.
Bearing traces of the old Anton Chekhov play The Wedding, The Contract is set during an "arranged" ceremony. The bride and groom barely know each other, but this matters not at all to their tradition-bound families. At the last minute, the bride balks. Only slightly nonplused, the groom's father, a status-seeking doctor, decides to go ahead with the expensive reception anyway. Polish director Krzysz Zanussi uses this scenario to stick it to capitalist corruption, and to society's destruction of the individual spirit. Leslie Caron, the one recognizable member of the cast, is outstanding as a wealthy, over-the-hill ballerina who happens to be a kleptomaniac.
A young writer in 1939 Warsaw faces the conflict of acting his age or relapsing into childhood during the brink of World War II. Based on the famous novel Ferdydurke by Witold Gombrowicz.
Govert Miereveld is a lawyer from a small Flemish town who also teaches in a school for girls. He harbors a secret love for one of his young students, Fran, whom he loses touch with after her graduation. Some time later, Miereveld has to attend an autopsy, and the shock of the experience deeply affects his mental balance. He finds out - or he believes so - that Fran has become a popular singer. He arranges to meet her to finally reveal his feelings. An ambiguous but perhaps tragic denouement follows which might be a figment of the protagonist's disturbed mind.
A romantic comedy set on Christmas Eve in Warsaw and centered around a series of characters.
The miners of one of the mines in Zagłębie Dąbrowskie receive news about the planned layoffs. The miners decide to organize a strike. One of the local MPs is trying to prevent this from happening. The French mine owner makes a dangerous decision - he orders the miners to work in an area at risk of fire. An explosion occurs unexpectedly. The miners lynch Coeur, and their demonstration, in which they carry the bodies of the victims of the crash, is brutally suppressed by the police.
The manager of a contemporary music composer falls in love with the real estate agent with whom he is looking for a house in Paris. But both have been used to living an independent life: they want to marry but at the same time, are afraid of marriage
Stefan Pulman, a lonely Varsovian, spends his vacation every year in a quiet guesthouse. He makes very real marriage plans. The object of his sighs is beautiful Susanna.
An intelligence agent's murder bring upon a national investigation into a spy organisation called Korn.
A quarry worker falls in love with a practicing doctor.
Henry Kesdi is a silenced classical composer and a survivor of the Holocaust. He is coaxed out from retirement by an inspired musicologist, Stefan, who convinces him to compose a complex symphony on his neglected piano. As a help Kesdi gets his new musical secretary. His loyal wife reluctantly accepts her as his young lover.
Wajda's homage to Zbigniew Cybulski, the "Polish James Dean" who starred in the director's ASHES AND DIAMONDS and died young. The movie follows the tribulations of a director attempting to make a movie with a Cybulski-like star who never shows up.
One night noble married couple Fabiusz and Waleria find that their long-estranged friend Mucjusz has returned from his travels of distant lands. During dinner, he presents them with mysterious and exotic gifts.
Eduard and Charlotte live an isolated and idyllic life together. But soon Eduard feels that something is missing and he invites his friend Otto to come stay. Charlotte, meanwhile, decides that her foster daughter Ottilie should come live with them. Complex and passionate relationships between the four people begin. Based on Goethe's novel of the same title.
A pair of lovers go off to a small hotel in a little town. The memories of war, however, intrude on their idyll. The girl and boy relive certain wartime experiences in flashback. She was a communist who drove a boy loving her to give himself up.
Set in the time of Napoleon wars, shows how the wars swept over the unfortunate Polish country at the beginning of the XIX-th century. Story revolves around the Polish legion under command of General Dabrowski, who then fought on Napoleon's side with the hopes of Poland's revival.
Strangers on a train. Late in 1916, a brave and idealistic Russian officer in his 20s comes to his superiors' attention when he stands up to Rasputin at a nightclub. He's asked to carry important papers from Petersburg to Stockholm by train in the dead of winter, a dangerous mission. The first-class carriage may be full of spies, and soon after the train embarks, the man in the next compartment searches Obozow's luggage. A beautiful stranger approaches him, a woman older than he, on a concert tour; a game of cat and mouse ensues with patriotism and emotion sometimes on opposite sides. Can Obozow consummate the affair, reach Stockholm, and maintain his ideals?
In 2059 scientists manage to revive two people after 80 years of suspended animation - a boy Marek Torlewski and a dictator Muanty, who quickly becomes a serious threat to humanity. Synteza is an adaptation of a novel by Maciej Wojtyszko.
Five social misfits undergo cryogenic suspension. When they awake in the far distant future, they find a world devastated by nuclear war. Yet they discover that each of them has some personal involvement - and responsibility - for the series of the events that ended in the destruction of the world they knew.
Hania, a 6-year-old orphan, is taken in by a young Polish couple who, despite the enormous risks, decide to give her not only shelter but also love. Against mortal danger, Anastasia and Jan move heaven and earth to save not only Hania's life, but also to help her remain a child. The key role here is played by Pajtek, considered a local freak, becoming the girl's closest friend, a substitute for an older brother, who even in the most difficult moments will be able to distract her from the evils of this world and infect her with his joy of life.
A single woman goes to Warsaw to consult her children about an offer she received.
Roman is a young, talented composer, but he is constantly plagued by bad luck. He earns extra money by anonymously writing music for his less talented colleagues. One day, he meets a friend from school who promises him a generous reward for doing him a small favor. By helping him, Roman becomes involved in a smuggling scandal involving people in prominent positions. The operation is led by Jerzy, who has unlimited power. Roman falls in love with his wife, Anna. Love becomes the driving force behind exposing the gang.
Two candidates are vying for the post of mayor of one of the major Western European cities - the Social Democrat Dr. Hayden and the "free nationalist" Alden. On the eve of the election, an independent journalist receives documents confirming Alden's connection with the secret services. He becomes the object of blackmail, but does not change his intentions to expose Alden.
Moving to a new place of residence, to an old apartment in the slums of St. Petersburg, Olga and her daughter Natasha accidentally discover a letter from the distant blockade of the forty-second year. A letter from the boy Yura for the girl Martha, whom he unwittingly offended before he had time to confess his love… The search for Marta becomes Olga and Natasha's salvation from pain and true self-discovery...
The tale of the relationship between a camp counselor and a 12 year old autistic girl at an upstate NY summer camp for autistic children.
Summer 1944. Polish armed forces are being organized in the Lublin region. Edward, one of the generals of the First Army, receives an order to form an artillery division. He counts on the help of Stefan, his old friend who lives in Lublin. However, it turns out that Stefan - a colonel and commander of the Home Army during the occupation - was arrested...
Beauty Zosia is a “hunter” by nature: she very professionally captivates rich men, draws money from them, and then throws deceived fans and plans a new victim. Once at the opening day, Zosya meets an irresistible macho, photo artist Mateusz, and, contrary to her own principles, falls in love with him. But after a while she begins to realize that Mateusz is also a “hunter” and that they are colleagues ...
A screen adaptation of the novel of the same name by Russian writer Ivan Turgenev. The film portrays the life of Russian landed gentry in the 1840s. After a long travel in Europe, nobleman Lavretsky returns back home. Everything in his estate is so familiar and dear to his heart. On his first visit to his neighbors, the Kalitins, he meets Lisa. He forgets his wife, left in Paris, forgets all his past. He desires only one thing – to always be with Lisa who is so unlike the women he used to know.
A thriller about Polish Intelligence Service working on detecting a net of foreign spies.
Ania, a sensitive, shy green-architecture student, tends the gardens of an elegant building and finds herself falling for its handsome tenant, Marcin. Ambitious and adept at lying to charm women, Marcin faces a sudden financial crisis he can only escape if his wealthy aunt Nela believes he’s already married, so he must persuade Ania to pose as his wife.
A zany and ribald farce about a machismo-fueled, philandering president, who strongly detests homosexuals and any other threats to his masculinity. His wife spends her days in utter misery, bemoaning her rapidly advancing age and counting her husband's lovers. One evening, when Mr. President beds his sexy female assistant, it wreaks a level of change that the man never could have foreseen.
A subjective adaptation of a well-known autobiographical novel by Zbigniew Unilowski (screenplay by Wojciech Jerzy Has with dialogues by Stanislaw Dygat). The adventures of the tenants of a sublet room in a Warsaw townhouse inhabited mostly by students and novice writers, presented against the social context of the 1930s.
An unknown Polish writer can't publish his novels, so his ex-wife decides to help him and get some of the profit for herself. She finally finds a publisher, but there's a strange single condition that could cost the writer his life.
The hero is a Jewish youth. He, like his family, has always been silent and undemonstrative in the face of prejudice. Now he stands up for his right to survive, and in so doing represents the fighting spirit that culminated in the Warsaw Uprising.
The film is about a group of old retired theatre actors in a retirement home for actors who aim to regroup and stage Goethe's Faust.
Panoramic view of a resort town in the summer of 1930. In seventeen episodes we get a glimpse at the microcosm of its colourful inhabitants and visitors, Poles and Jews, the high society and the desperately poor.
A story of a dropout out of a succesful career and a loving family. He goes to a local railroad station, then checks into a hotel and refuses to leave despite visits by a psychiatrist and his own son. He watches people daily at the station. A tv reporter is trying to come up with a story which would help him to save his job. He likes to chase women and the dropout's wife is one of his targets. He gets interested in the story of her husband and tries to make a program about mysterious individual. Once the tv crew arrives to the scene, the subject tries to hide and ends up on the roof of the station, where he catches a glimpse of sunshine - the "smaller sky" - before stepping onto a glass roof and falling to his death.
The story concerns a succesful writer at the height of his career. He is in a state of crisis, unable to forget the girl he had a brief affair in the 40's. At the promotion of his new book he meets her after the years and reminisces about the past, when he was on a government mission to recover a missing art treasure, a triptych. After the years the girl, now married, barely remembers the whole thing, while he re-examines the affair which he has so much romanticized.
A story about a German family during World War II with every family member having a different approach to Jews, raging from hatred to compassion.
In a backwater town, opera director Andrej Wischnewsky is supposed to put on a production of Mozart's "Don Giovanni".
Januszek - the town's Casanova, returns from the army. Waiting for him at home is Blada, the mother of his future child, the daughter of the head of the local security service, who arranged for the candidate to be a son-in-law to shorten his military service. Januszek, who has had many women's hearts broken on his conscience, is not eager to get married.
The grotesque comedy with crime elements takes place in a grocery store.
In 1806 Berlin, the salon of the beautiful Frau von Carayon and her daughter Victoire, who is suffering from illness, is a magnet for some of the officers of the elite regiment based here, such as the cavalry captain von Schach, but it also attracts the writer von Bülow and his publisher Sander.
Students in the final year of high school are preparing for prom. The anticipation of the prom distracts high school graduates from mundane school duties. The youngsters find the world of school romance and parties more attractive. Will a conflict with the management cause the cancellation of the prom, awaited by all?
A little boy, craving for his father's attention, imagines a made-up "Mr. President" who looks just like his father but is caring and attentive.
A group of students of the last year of the local motor technical school is slowly entering adult life. An atmosphere of emptiness and hopelessness reigns around them. Young people have no idea for their future, but they do not want to duplicate the pattern of a poor existence according to which their parents live. One of them, Arek, had a chance to break out of this vicious circle for a moment. The possibility of a brilliant career, fame and a lot of money was opening up to him, the Polish Junior Champion in Kickboxing. Serious heart disease shattered these plans. Arek dreams of renting a flat and freeing himself from his alcoholic father. Together with Lalka, Panicz, Mucha and Renata - his closest friends, he often visits the Kosmos pub, owned by the local mafioso Marsel. One day Marsel offers Arek and Mucha a jump: they are to break into the apartment on the top floor of a skyscraper.
A mature man recalls his youthful love and comes to the town where he once met a woman who was important to him. However, it is hard to turn back time.
Well-known fencer Paweł Kaczmarek makes an important decision in his life – he decides to quit drinking. Unexpectedly, he receives information that his ex-wife is staying in Austria with his child. He immediately sets off for Austria, finds Anna's apartment, and kidnaps his own son.
In 1807, Napoleon meets and falls in love with 22-year-old Polish countess Marie Walewska, who is unhappily married to a much older man. Enchanted by the blonde, blue-eyed countess, the emperor enters into an affair with Marie, who uses the relationship to induce Napoleon to treat Poland fairly.
Captain Sowiński finds himself on the Recovered Territories in 1945, right in the midst of local conflicts stemming from Poles settling there.
Two noblemen live in one castle, which they both own half of. After a wall dividing both halves of the castle gets damaged they start an intense rivalry.
Strangers on a train. Late in 1916, a brave and idealistic Russian officer in his 20s comes to his superiors' attention when he stands up to Rasputin at a nightclub. He's asked to carry important papers from Petersburg to Stockholm by train in the dead of winter, a dangerous mission. The first-class carriage may be full of spies, and soon after the train embarks, the man in the next compartment searches Obozow's luggage. A beautiful stranger approaches him, a woman older than he, on a concert tour; a game of cat and mouse ensues with patriotism and emotion sometimes on opposite sides. Can Obozow consummate the affair, reach Stockholm, and maintain his ideals?
The story of Bálint Balassi, the poet and warrior. The scene is Hungary at the end of the 16th century. The soldiers stationed at the castles of Hungary's border defence-system spend their days with anti-Turkish raids, hunting and womanising.
A family saga of Barbara Ostrzeńska-Niechcic and Bogumił Niechcic against the backdrop of the January Uprising of 1863 and World War I. The film is a rather straightforward and faithful adaptation of a novel by Maria Dabrowska with the same title. The plot is woven around the changing fortunes of a noble (upper-class) Niechcic family in the pre-WWI Poland. There are two main crossing threads: a social history one and an existential one.
Former Master Mariner Klimecki works an unassuming job in a small port near the Baltic Sea, hiding his identity from the world, which makes him suspicious in the eyes of the local government.
An unlikely couple - a Polish concentration camp inmate and a young German girl - stick together and try to survive the RAF bombing of Dresden in February 1945.
A peasant’s son rises through the ranks of post-war Polish society like none of his ancestors ever could. Moving to the city, he becomes part of a new socialist order. But in leaving his rural roots behind, does he also abandon his soul?
A young lady from a good home, full of life, wins the hearts of the greatest gloomy people and turns people into people open to the world. He infects everyone with kindness and optimism, even when misfortunes fall on the family. Resolute and resourceful, she takes matters into her own hands, but will fate be favorable to her and happiness will smile at her?
A sequel to "Vabank" (1981), introduces the same characters entangled in a duel between a former safecracker and a crooked bank manager.
This tragic musical drama chronicles the star-crossed love between beloved French singer Edith Piaf and World Middleweight boxing champion Marcel Cerdan who died in a plane crash. The tumultuous affair is paralleled by the love affair of a French POW and his young pen pal who get engaged after writing to each other for four years and having never met. Their romances are framed by the sad, torchy songs of Piaf.
In a country house at the turn of a century live a family of eccentrics. Anastasia, the beautiful mistress of the manor, enjoys the amorous attentions of her stepson Blarney so openly that her husband Diapanasius takes out his shotgun and shoots her. The rest of the family accepts her end as a matter-of-fact, and soon - her return as a voyeuristic ghost who interferes with their love lifes. Anastasia has a posthumous son Tadeusz, "born" by clambering out of the tree trunk. Anastasia seduces him too, and drives another men so crazy that they kill her another couple of times. Finally, Tadeusz, the arch-rebel, leads a mob on a raid of the old manor.
A group of Georgian scientists traveling to Poland for a scientific symposium are housed in an old fortress . A middle-aged man , a descendant of Polish nobles , falls in love with one of the members of the group . Love turns the previously modest , inconspicuous scientist into a charming woman . After returning from a business trip, his lover soon visits him in his homeland .
Reportage from the set of the film "Everything for Sale", focusing on the director - Andrzej Wajda. At one stage of the filming, Wajda planned to include all the documentary material shot by Ziarnik in his film. Ultimately, however, he changed the concept.
A multi-dimensional portrait of one of the most distinctive artists in the history of Polish cinematography. Wojciech Jerzy Has always hovered over the line where the mainstream met the avant-garde and his biography was marked by moments of artistic triumphs and personal tragedies.