Nightmarish and claustrophobic film from Grzegorz Królikiewicz, one of the most formally radical and innovative Polish filmmakers, yet also one of the least known. Sadly not included in the Polish boxed set of his work, the film shares a little in common with Trier’s Befrielsesbilleder and Lopushansky’s Letters From A Dead Man, along with Ryszard Czekala’s Czlowiek i chleb. Shot almost entirely in darkness with obfuscated framing, it’s difficult to capture film’s unusual beauty in still images, but the densely oppressive atmosphere is overwhelming.

Synopsis:
During the first World War, a Captain and Lieutenant of the Russian army are buried in the basement of the fortress of Przemysl. Water from wells and large supplies of food and candles allow them to survive. The Captain, however, gradually loses his mind and commit suicide. The Lieutenant resigns himselt to fate, keeping a diary and hallucinating whilst living amongst the rats who are his only companions.

648MB | 1h 34m | 640×480 | avi

https://nitro.download/view/C405F8CB824064C/Grzegorz_Krolikiewicz_-_Fort_13__1983_.avi
https://nitro.download/view/961F333288429FF/Grzegorz_Krolikiewicz_-_Fort_13_1983_UPDATE_1.srt

Language(s):Polish
Subtitles:English

The post Grzegorz Królikiewicz – Fort 13 (1983) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

Story:
A young boy is sent to a boarding school run by an eccentric scientist/magician. He befriends a talking bird named Matt and is told how it lost its human form, Matt was once a boy prince. Touched by the story, our young hero vows to help his feathered friend regain his true identity. The fairytale is based on the eternal conflict between Good and Evil. Good symbolised by Mr Blot means benevolence, understanding of different people and nature. Evil symbolised by Alois Bubble means egotism and thirst for power. But above all Mr Blot’s Academy is always full of fun and humour.

A review form the web:
An adaptation of a novel by Jan Brzechwa. 10-year Jaś Niezgódka begins his studies at a strange boarding school located in an old palace. The pedagogue, Mr. Blot, is not merely a teacher, but also an alchemist and a dream-interpreter. He lives on colorful confetti-like “freckles” that are provided for him on a weekly basis by Filip the Barber. When he runs out of “freckles”, he shrinks. Meanwhile, Jaś embarks upon several adventures and discovers the secret of Filip the Barber. The latter desires to ruin Mr. Blot and his Academy. Eventually he succeeds by sending robot named Adolf into the school. Partially animated and with numerous songs, this children’s film was widely acclaimed and seen by over 14 million spectators in movie theatres. It is filled with allusions, mainly to “Star Wars” and “The Muppets”.

1.34GB | 1:19:45 | 640 x 368 | avi

https://nitro.download/view/8A9D442CB4DF724/akademia_pana_kleksa01.avi
https://nitro.download/view/3679413B895A70D/akademia_apana_kleksa02.avi
https://nitro.download/view/815FAD8CAE8DB12/akademia_pana_kleksa01.srt
https://nitro.download/view/2E80B60F5CD6962/akademia_pana_kleksa02.srt

Language:Polish
Subtitles:English (srt)

The post Krzysztof Gradowski – Akademia pana Kleksa AKA Mr Blot’s Academy (1984) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

Quote:
Two strangers, Jerzy (Leon Niemczyk) and Marta (Lucyna Winnicka), accidentally end up holding tickets for the same sleeping chamber on an overnight train to the Baltic Sea coast. While handsome, well dressed and rather laconic, Jerzy seems ill at ease, while Marta is not talkative and would prefer to be alone. Staszek (Zbigniew Cybulski) is a student and Marta’s spurned lover, and will not leave her alone. When the police enter the train in search of a murderer on the lam, rumors fly and everything seems to point toward one of the main characters as the culprit. [spoiler removed from quote]

This is a more amorphous and ambiguous tale than other contemporary films of the Polish School, and Night Train seems to lack the direct references to recent history and the contemporary political situation of the Poland of the 1950s that are a hallmark of the style. However, the Hitchcockian atmosphere, the unimaginably tight shots and the overall sense of claustrophobia and dread evoke the sense of disappointment following in the wake of 1956 and the end of the ‘Polish Spring’. All of Kawalerowicz’s films deal with individual fate in a society being crushed by overwhelming external forces, whether war or politics, in an attempt to examine moral choice under pressure. Night Train is no exception, only here he has created an allegory of misfits among a society of passengers, a society that is predictable, suspicious of individuality, and eager to punish. All of Poland escaping though the night to the end of the line. Ironically, the film may represent in its way the end of the Polish School as well.

https://nitro.download/view/F5CB25AF0281EB4/Jerzy_Kawalerowicz_-_(1959)_Night_Train.mkv

Language(s):Polish
Subtitles:English, French

The post Jerzy Kawalerowicz – Pociag AKA Night Train (1959) first appeared on Cinema of the World.

Quote:
Before he got all famous with movies like Rosemary’s Baby and The Pianist, Roman Polanski created Knife in the Water, his first feature film.

Water is a small but incredibly engaging movie, taking place during a day trip on a Polish lake. In the film, upscale couple Andrzej and Krystyna (Leon Niemczyk and Jolanta Umecka) drive out to the marina to take a little ride on the water, picking up a tenacious, beefcake hitchhiker (Zygmunt Malanowicz, whose character is unnamed in the film) and letting him go along on the trip. Andrzej goes to outrageous lengths to belittle his passenger, as the two men obliquely battle for the attention of Krystyna. It all comes to a head with Andrzej pushing the non-swimming blonde kid into the water, right after tossing his beloved knife into the drink. And there’s more to come after that.

Knife in the Water is exceptionally well made for a first movie, maybe the best “first” following only Citizen Kane. Polanski and his cinematographer Jerzy Litman prove themselves masters at pulling off a very difficult shoot that takes place almost entirely at sea and in a variety of weather circumstances. The script, while it’s never directly on point, is always engaging and never becomes boring, even though the trio talk endlessly about the most banal subjects. It’s all subtext for Polanski’s story about jealousy and betrayal — and on a broader scale, class warfare. Krystyna is the central figure in the film, though she probably gets the least amount of screen time. Would she really be interested in a nameless drifter, buff though he may be? Then again, why would a sophisticate be married to a cad like Andrzej? Water challenges the brain with a simple puzzle and a short running time, and in the end it offers no answer, remaining freely open for interpretation.

1.56GB | 1h 34m | 790×576 | mkv

https://nitro.download/view/04E5838DF1FB107/Roman_Polanski_-_(1962)_Knife_in_the_Water.mkv
https://nitro.download/view/6A5D90A38A358E5/Roman_Polanski_-_(1962)_Knife_in_the_Water.srt

Language:Polish
Subtitles:English

The post Roman Polanski – Nóz w wodzie AKA Knife in the Water (1962) first appeared on Cinema of the World.