THE MIRACLE CLUB

Watchable. Colourful 1960s in a little Irish town with its pastimes centred round the church and little vices of its inhabitants. Relatively little happens till the trip to Lourdes. Then comes a hilarious false miracle scene. You also get a humorous take on men taking over shopping, house chores and childcare. The movie turns downright feminist towards the end as reproductive rights are discussed: having 12 children is too many even for a traditional Irish housewife, home abortion attempts are an experience shared by all the women, just like house chores are all the women's burden.

VILDMAEND (WILD MEN)

Watchable. Zany comedy meets drama in this Danish film about finding your identity. While you follow one guy's story to see what comes out of his sudden attempt to change his life, you witness inept, weak police unable to deal with criminals and cherry-picked historical re-enactments both of which prove resignation from modern creature comforts impossible. The inability to live in nature is a stronger message than the greed implied at some point. It also tells about what matters in life. Luckily it's all taken with a pinch of salt and entertaining.

Reviewed from the distributor's screener, cinematic reception might differ.

NASZOSC - TYLKO DLA NIENORMALNYCH (NASZOSC - ONLY FOR THE ABNORMAL)

Recommended. Early 1990s, system transformation times in Poland. Naszość was a political activism group adopting creative, humorous, performative methods which gained them public support. E.g. "jeleń w garniturze jest mniej awanturujący się" ("a deer in a suit is less rowdy") was a paraphrase of a famous line from a Polish comedy. The documentary astonishes you when it delves into their 1999 protest against the Russian invasion of Chechnya, as you hear them talk about Ramzan Kadyrov in whose house cellars people were tortured and compare Putin to Stalin - now, during the invasion of Ukraine, these reminders of the events hit you even stronger. Then there's the brilliant list of how judges are distinguished from prostitutes. Some memories are hilarious like when they were demanding the release of their friend from a police station but it turned out he had been released about 15 minutes before they stormed the building. It shows how their initially anti-communist agenda subsequently turned into rightist opposition to the modern-day left as now some of them run "Gazeta Polska" and similar right-wing media.

Reviewed from the distributor's screener, cinematic reception might differ.

ZIELONA GRANICA (THE GREEN BORDER)

The movie's based on real stories and well researched, nearly documentary, as a representative of Granica (Border) - the organisation rescuing refugees on the Polish-Belarusian border - says.

Recommended. At first I wondered why the movie had been shot in low-contrast black and white. Later I realised it made people's colour irrelevant, simply everyone looked the same. A few minutes in the movie it already becomes brutal. Then it repeatedly shocks you with how callous, greedy or malicious humans can be. It's so harrowing I cried most of the time. It's gripping of course and hard-hitting politically - Maciej Stuhr is wonderful in his episodic role. As for the social context, the characters represent a full scope of attitudes. The heavy content is broken up with occasional humour e.g.: "Moje libido spadło do -1. Spytaj Anki." ("My libido has dropped to -1. Ask Anka.") or "To wygląda jakbyś to jedzenie zatruła." ("It looks as if you had poisoned the food.") The whole thing is powerful nevertheless.

LA PETITE BANDE (THE LITTLE GANG)

Watchable. A group of pupils fight a powerful factory contaminating their local river but their scheme gets out of hand. The comedy is based on slapstick, children's understanding of the world and the relationship between them. It's hard not to laugh at the face a boy makes after denying as if the girl caused him pain removing a thorn but most is just moderately amusing. The scene of vomiting is over the top. But all in all, the flick's good fun for all ages.

MINUTA CISZY (A MINUTE OF SILENCE) EP. 6

Recommended. A mixture of emotions in the opening: first humour, then menace, then what seems a sudden truce between the two undertakers. Not a minute later you realise it's a war. Gripping. The sabotage is brilliant. A series of dramatic turns of action follows. The season ends with an evocative scene with coffins - quite tongue-in-cheek. Superb. And with sequel potential. 

Seen courtesy of Canal +.

WILK S. 1 EP. 1

Watchable. Like every platform viewer knows, teenagers have sex, smoke weed and party. It opens with a wolf running past a car parking in a wood so that a couple get laid. Everyone watches news on some riots. No plot, no justification for the background apparently global situation. Empty, silly, simplistic. It looks like made by pothead youngsters. I'm glad the episode took less than 10 minutes.

This episode is available free of charge on Canal+ online.

HER DOCS FORUM

THE HEARING

Recommended. The documentary reenacts 4 hearings of asylum seekers in Switzerland with them and actual officers participating. A smart move is reversing the roles at some point. Now the decision-makers have to explain themselves. They admit it's impossible to be unerring but they seem sympathetic and considerate. So it comes as a shock that none of the applicants was accepted. All appealed and the precise outcome remains unknown. Engaging and thought-provoking.

Reviewed from the organizers' screener, cinematic reception might differ.

HER DOCS FORUM

MIDWIVES 

Watchable. The pregnant woman's belly at childbirth looks disgusting, as does the infant being born - I'm lucky to be watching the documentary on a small screen. Stunning aerial shots of Myanmar, with temples on mountain tops are a welcome variety in the pictures. The documentary's not that much about midwifery, as it is about daily lives of the Muslim minority in Myanmar: shabby housing, romantic Bollywood-like songs in the Rakhine movies they watch in their own language, their dreams: to see a city, to be single. Politics, with systemic discrimination, appears in the background, mainly through pejorative name-calling and in what the protagonists say, little is shown in the footage of political activists, all violence is only mentioned verbally so it doesn't affect the viewer much, especially one familiar with the issue. 

Reviewed from the organizers' screener, cinematic reception might differ.

TESCIOWIE 2 (THE IN-LAWS 2)

Watchable. Opens with a wonderful scene, just perfect in this comedy - yes, part 2 is finally comical, unlike dramatic part 1. Eryk Kulm jr joins the cast, with a great result - a perfect match for Maja Ostaszewska and superb on his own. It's a summer holiday flick and of course it ridicules lots of Polish vices and tourists' behaviours, with a number of hilarious scenes, e.g. when the hotel porter is waiting after he's brought the luggage and the couple are anxious: "Why isn't he leaving? Is he going to live with us?", and snappy lines in all the arguments. I genuinely had fun for a large part. Costumes are aptly selected and reflect the protagonists' personalities perfectly. While the sound is ordinary, at some point the use of the rear loudspeakers in the screening room added the spatial effect. Disco polo music was a bit annoying but may have reflected the Polish mass taste. The emotional outburst at the finale is a bit out of place, much exaggerated, overly dramatic and simply doesn't match the comedy. But a sequel is coming. Third time lucky?

WLASNYMI SLOWAMI - FESTIWAL FILMOWY (IN OUR OWN WORDS)

Y SWN

Watchable. The Welsh flick goes to great lengths to make this simple story, filled with red tape, dynamic and engaging. But does so adding fast-paced music during dialogue which sounds weird. Still, a piece of political history to be learnt and with a top re-enaction of 1979-80. The pictures are dark all the time and the music comes from the right front speaker only, not sure if it's the fault of the copy or of the cinema.

HAYTARMA (2013)

Recommended. First you get to feel the joy, exuberance, amicability of the Crimean Tatar community. Then comes a shock. The Tatars who fought in the Great Patriotic War, some of who were recognised as USSR heroes, are faced with Stalin-ordered deportation. They're given 15 minutes to pack "food for two days, 5 kg clothes maximum, nothing valuable". In result 46% of the nation died of hunger. A deeply moving story. Akhtem Seitablayev stands out among the cast which is superb all around.

ITU NINU

Watchable. I appreciate the movie tackling climate change, migrant control, air quality - all vital issues. I loved the dystopian joke: "corner of Orwell Street and Huxley Crescent". This science fiction drama shot in and around Edinburgh is an atmospheric, enchanting, poetic love story. But it gets the science fiction layer all wrong. It depicts 2084 as devoid of people which makes no sense: the world is already overpopulated now, the number of over 8 billion humans is constantly growing, additionally the film talks about mass migration so the background should be packed with people, instead only 3 persons appear with not even human noise out there. The protagonist is valued for bringing rare seeds, while in real life virtually all countries in the world have their own seed banks, both domestic and extraterritorial, there's also a world seed bank in Svalbard so no individual needs to preserve them in dubious conditions. In the film you're repeatedly informed of insufficient oxygen but in the final shot you see greenery just outside the city, where the couple get apparently with no vehicle so that doesn't sound plausible either.

That was the world premiere of the movie by

NII NU'U: SACRED SKIN

Watchable. I got to the screening 7 minutes late so can't comment on the opening. As for the rest of this documentary, you learn a bit about how to read the Mixtec codices and of traditions like weddings or the carnival. Interestingly it's women who painted the pictograms and created the codices in the past. Also nowadays mostly women learnt Mixtec and completed the language courses. The brass bands were unbearable to me and the cinema played the film awfully loud.

Mixtec is not taught at school. The director learnt it from his monolingual grandparents, he had to learn the language to be able to communicate with them.

AINU: INDIGENOUS PEOPLE OF JAPAN

Watchable. The documentary teaches you a bit about the Ainu's language and culture, mostly about their material culture and ceremonies. Still, it's not as informative as it could be. I'm still not sure of the language - it it oral only or does it have a script? Or if it uses Japanese script, which one? Also, why was the woman unable to go to hospital in childhood?

MINUTA CISZY (A MINUTE OF SILENCE) EP. 5

Recommended. Cinematography stands out, especially starting some walking sequences with showing the moving feet or the bit with the hems of the cassocks. This episode brings another big twist of action, surprising but plausible at the same time. And a menacing ending.

Seen courtesy of Canal +. 

A HAUNTING IN VENICE

Watchable. Based on Agatha Christie's "Hallowe'en Party" but with the action moved to Venice, Italy and events largely changed. Still it's a gripping whodunit. This vision is very dark, grim - unlike past Christie's adaptations. The sound recorded in Atmos means even in an ordinary screening room the girl's voice surrounds you. Wonderfully shot Venice opens and closes the movie. The largest, middle part is the crime intrigue. While it keeps you glued to the screen, philosophical comments to the situation are just vexing. As for such a fright-ridden night, the movie could be more dynamic. The last Poirot scene is delightfully amusing. 

LIMBO

Indigenous Australian Ivan Sen produced, wrote, directed, cut and basically made the movie. 

Watchable. Slow but steady pace, little sound other than the radio, the church or conversations. A crime is being reviewed after 20 years. But that's just a pretext to look at the interracial relations now and in the past. It's black and white which is apt, taken that matters of colour are an issue constantly. Also Australian outback looks outlandish in this high contrast black and white, especially the arid, Moon-like landscape shot from above.

ZMIJOWISKO S. 1 EP. 1

Watchable. The set-up is similar to the first season of "Belfer" ("The Teacher"): someone arrives into a small town to investigate a crime that took place a year earlier. Here it's the father (fantastic Paweł Domagała in the role) looking for his missing daughter, The locals are so hostile it's hilarious. But then mixing places and times, all in one episode, makes it hard to follow. Most protagonists, whether adult or teenage, swear a lot so it's hard to like them. But you get intrigued by what happened and who played what role in the girl's disappearance. Catchy it is. 

This episode is available free of charge on Canal+ online.

RIGET EXODUS (THE KINGDOM: EXODUS) EP. 3

Watchable. In the pre-credit opening the hospital cabling looks like blood arteries. The title, as always, drips with blood. The supernatural to rational ratio appears to be growing in this episode. The manipulative persecution of Swede Halfmer by the Danes becomes disturbing. The gags about nations extend to the Chinese. References to the original serial aren't always clear. The whole plot gets more absurd. 

 

RIGET EXODUS (THE KINGDOM: EXODUS) EP. 4

Watchable. Starts with a bloody open giant heart surgery. The rest is in a lighter tone, a welcome respite after heavy ep. 3. Some jokes refer to the hospital as the filming location. 

RIGET EXODUS (THE KINGDOM: EXODUS) EP. 5

Recommended. Great opening. Gripping and all finally makes sense, including the supernatural layer.

Mikael Persbrandt (truly Swedish) as Halfstrom is magnificent throughout the whole serial. The music theme is fantastic too.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM

Watchable. Another movie, this time animated, about teenage body changes and growing up pains transmuted into a superhero flick. Seth Rogen voices Punk and is also involved in the production and in the screenplay which gives you the idea of what level of entertainment you can expect. Ice Cube voices Superfly, Jackie Chan does Splinter. Jackie Chan or Ice Cube's voices can't be heard in the Polish dubbing ruling the cinemas in Poland. On the other hand, you get great dialogue in Polish owing to Zuzanna Chojecka's translation. Kung fu films and music insertions are fun but the whole rest is 90s-style animation and hip-hop, it's grim, dark, unpleasant, ugly. Atmos-recorded music and sound effects surround you. The mid-credit announces a sequel.

FESTIWAL POLSKICH FILMOW FABULARNYCH GDYNIA 2023 (GDYNIA FILM FESTIVAL 2023)

Viewer numbers of the festival dropped to 52K at cinemas last year from 72K 3 years earlier but 150K watched online.

This year's festival starts on 18th September. There'll be 25 shorts in competition: from film schools, independent ones, from Studio Munka's 30-minute program. The microbudget competition has no selection - all 4 movies got in. 16 movies will be in the main competition. The jury comprises of representatives each of a different film profession, e.g. a costume designer, a producer, a cinematographer etc. 

Set decor designer Allan Starski's masterclass will be conducted by Paweł Edelman. The masterclass will include, among others, Starski's co-operation with cinematographer Janusz Kamiński - Steven Spielberg's regular collaborator - on "Schindler's List". The designer's exhibition will take place too. He'll present his and others' movies which he sees important in regards to set decor, e.g. "Oliver Twist", "The Pianist", "Hannibal" - large decors where he's present, the process of setting them up. Andrzej Wajda "was always his guru", as Allan Starski says. He recommends "Popiół i diament" ("Ashes and Diamonds") where top cinematography plays well with the decor. 

Lots of space is going to be devoted to other movies from decades ago, jubilees. 

International co-operation section Polonica will present "Delegation", "Disco Boy", "Norwegian Dream".

Krakow Film Festival and Docs Against Gravity co-operate on the documentary section. All 3 films are created by women and are devoted to female artists. 

Gdynia Dzieciom (Gdynia for Children) will focus on adaptations. 

Film school students will prepare nightly chronicles to provide light respite after the heavy main competition movies.

Gdynia Industry will focus on domestic distribution, international sales in Europe, obtaining funding from Eurimages, on how to debut, how to use AI wisely, royalties, as well as consultations with PISF (Polish Film Institute) directors and consultations on copyright.

No print. The festival is going to be green: bidons, bags, electric buses, bike stations, tickets on the phone (from my own experience it means A4-size printing for people without smartphones and the digital carbon footprint may be larger than printing those little pieces of paper), eco-coffee, vegan soup in edible packaging, planting 500 trees. Electrolux will hand in an award for the greenest production.

THE SKELETON'S COMPASS

Recommended. Polish cinemas show it only in Polish dubbing but, if you speak the language,  Bartek Fukiet has translated the movie and Janusz Chabior voices Jedidiah so you're in for a treat. This family adventure movie is extraordinary: time travel, Cheyenne lands and fun: "So who have we buried?" Very pleasant on the whole.

DRII WINTER (A PIECE OF SKY)

Watchable. A slow movie, where prolonged shots match the peace of the rural environment, in a peculiar form: with a choir standing in the mountains and singing from time to time - different than Bollywood being shot there in one scene. The life in the hamlet is primitive, with men pissing anywhere, much like their livestock. The protagonist is no different in that respect, yet he's a man of higher than average sensitivity. The plot's relatively simple and steady. About half-way through comes a major shock. Just for a while. But it alters the direction of the story. The meaning behind it all appears to lie in the marriage vows: "for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part". Disconcerting and soothing at the same time.

Reviewed from the distributor's screener, cinematic reception might differ.

BLUE BEETLE

Watchable. I had to watch it dubbed in Polish, the subtitled version disappeared from the cinema early. The Polish dialogues sound natural but the voicing exaggerated. The movie's yet another production where teenage body changes and growing strength from ordinary pains of growing up are transmuted into the superhero genre. The formulaic superhero flick aimed at teenagers with obligatory gadgetry, great CGIs and too many fights is enacted with great gusto owing to the endearing family characters. All-Hispanic electronic music dominates the wonderful soundtrack which gives the movie an 80s feel. It's surrounding even though recorded in ordinary Dolby. What's modern and unique in the superhero genre are the Central American undertones, not only in regards to immigration but also, with the war-like visuals of the corporate choppers approaching the Reyes family house, Nana's skills and the sequence of Carapax's memories reminding you of Central American revolutions, wars and the US involvement - brief but tear-jerking. The mid-credit implies a sequel - I'm looking forward to it, the characters are amiable. The post-credit is a cartoon with the Chapulín.

BELFER III (THE TEACHER III) EP. 1,2 

Recommended. You don't need to have seen the first two seasons - even though the first has been available on Canal + online free of charge all summer. Apart from the lead protagonist, only one character from those remains in the third season. The teacher returns to his hometown - Ustka stands in for Międzymorze. Wonderful cinematography, music by Fisz Emade, but most of all all actors, young and old, and the story glue you to the screen. It's not hard to get hooked on "Belfer". There are twists and turns - infrequent but gripping and each episode ends with an obligatory cliffhanger.  

STRAYS

Watchable. It's a crazy story in which animal rights are treated with a large dose of levity but still all the issues ring painfully true. It's gross, gets many dog behaviours completely wrong but is touching and true about humans - that's what it gets right. Big shots like Will Ferrell, Jamie Foxx, Isla Fisher voice the dogs. Dennis Quaid makes a cameo as himself. There are some hilarious gags, e.g.: "Checking on the clipboard, ah... we also couldn't retouch your penis." They ridicule dogs crossing the front paws unnaturally for pictures - something I remember also seeing in the recent flicks like "O psie, który jeździł koleją" ("Lampo. The Travelling Dog") or "Lassie - ein neues Abenteuer" ("Lassie - a new Adventure"). Some music's great. Still, it's often a tear jerker due to the sad issues tackled. Surprisingly this unsophisticated flick is the best dog movie in cinemas these days. There's a great mid-credit.

GRAN TURISMO

Recommended. Based on a true story, where the original protagonist Jann Mardenborough is a stunt double for himself. Orlando Bloom is superb as the British marketing specialist, so are Geri Halliwell Horner and Djimon Hounsou as the boy's parents. Most of all, though, top-notch script by Zach Baylin and Jason Hall, direction by Neill Blomkamp and editing by Austyn Daines render the film mass viewer friendly. I've never been into gaming or car racing but this movie proved not only totally engaging for me but also perfectly comprehensible. 

BELFER (THE TEACHER) SEASON 1 EP. 5

Recommended. Opens with what appears to be an accidental deadly shooting. What follows is full of surprises except one: do we have the culprit?

The first season is available free of charge on Canal+ online all summer.

UKRYTA SIEC

Watchable. Inspired by real life events from Poland and some other countries - yes, similar criminal circles were discovered at the same time in at least 3 different countries - it's likely to reverberate across the globe. Some stilted pace in the beginning, like in an average Polish drama, precedes a story where a tabloid journalist is brought up short and then treated unfairly at work when her private sex video is released online. Then you follow her travails as she's trying to discover more secrets than one - social and family hypocrisy make for a  gripping story. What you hear forces you to face the horror of such crimes - those are hard-hitting moments - and ponder on the ambivalence of human beings. Still, with a few twists of action but also some predictability the thriller doesn't quite cut it. Characters' motivations remain vastly unclear. Poor cinematography mars top acting. 

REALITY

Recommended. From the beginning you're assured of the authenticity of material, plenty of real life footage and photos are inserted throughout. Two locations, a handful of people, where Reality Leigh (in the report misspelt Lee) Winner and two FBI agents, acted superbly by Sydney Sweeney and by Josh Hamilton and Marchánt Davis respectively, engage in an ambiguous conversation. Top-notch direction by Tina Satter, cinematography by Paul Yee, editing by Jennifer Vecchiarello and Ron Dulin skillfully reflect how she's getting trapped. The action subtly gets denser and denser, as she's gently being cornered by perfectly qualified agents, the frisking towards the end also impresses with professionalism. At the same time it's disturbing how the NSA and FBI treat whistleblowing as a vice. Yet the fact she leaked documents about how Russians tampered with the US elections (Trump's win) stays on the margin of this intense drama about interrogation techniques.

RIGET EXODUS (THE KINGDOM: EXODUS) EP. 1,2

Originally Lars von Trier shot the "Riget" serial in order to obtain funding for a bigger project. Yet this attempt has achieved a cult status. Inspired by Lynch's "Twin Peaks" comeback, now he's returned with his own serial sequel. 

Ep. 1 watchable, ep. 2 recommended. Basically it takes getting used to those Danes v. Swedes jokes - to a non-Nordic person they're not that funny, even if you know what they allude to. On the other hand, it's not the supernatural layer that's interesting but the nationalist sallies that get you hooked. Lars von Trier is self-conscious and therefore less present from episode 2. Still, his die-hard fans will get an Easter egg or two. Both the production and the action take place 25 years on so it's all up-to-date in terms of technology and social norms. I'm looking forward to seeing the remaining episodes. 

OPPENHEIMER

Watchable. Old boring Nolan returns. Even though since "Tenet" he's grasped how to make a movie dynamic, it's still overlong, even the two trials are lacklustre and plain pointless in the plot, overly complicated - the editing by Jennifer Lame doesn't do it favours - 1 hour could be easily cut out. You basically get a needlessly complex storyline that is cluttered with too many incidents and characters. It may be factually accurate but watching an encyclopedia at the cinema is far from exciting. Also Cillian Murphy has neither the looks nor the seductiveness essential to convincingly portray a womanizer. At least Rami Malek stands out even in his episodic role. Kenneth Branagh and Florence Pugh are harder to recognize having been cast, especially Florence, in the opposition to their earlier cinematic images. Music and sound effects enliven the action and are wonderful in their own right.

LES SECRETS DE MON PERE (MY FATHER'S SECRETS)

Watchable. Set in 1961-1970, it tells of an obscure period in history, when the Nazi crimes of WW2 weren't discussed. It reveals how the Jewish victims were ashamed of what humiliation they had been subjected to. This animation is a serious drama of how it damaged families, how ignorant European societies were and how the Holocaust survivors carried the burden with them many years later. When you think you know it all...

Reviewed from the distributor's screener, cinematic reception might differ.

O PSIE, KTORY JEZDZIL KOLEJA (LAMPO. THE TRAVELLING DOG)

Watchable. A lovely opening with a real and an animated dog interchangeably manifests dog behaviours. From there it goes downhill. The action's set nowadays but people dressed like a century ago. Nowy Sącz stands in for the fictitious town whose bizarre name I can't remember. The plot with a terminally ill child is so annoying I could barely tolerate it. As if you weren't chugged with requests for money donations in real life... At least the dog, in spite of getting hurt in an accident, survives and his troubles aren't as bad as the literary canine's. But another vexing trope are influencers, all pretentious. The plot's distant from the book, but, what's worse, deformed irritably.

BRAT (BROTHER) 

It's the working title of the movie being shot in Żyrardów this month. At first I spotted two dogs among the crew, so I asked whether they were acting in the film, to which the producer responded: "Nie, to obrońcy planu." ("No, they are the film set defenders.") The cutest defenders ever. The shooting started on 1 August in Żyrardów, where they've been filming for over 3 weeks and will finish in Gdańsk at the end of the month since the boy actors need to go back to school at the beginning of September. The whole crew, including the supporting staff, is going to move cities, with so few days in Gdańsk there's no point in recruiting a new team. The Garden City or the Polish Capital of Linen, as Żyrardów is dubbed, is a 15-minute one, meaning you can get anywhere by public transport within a quarter of an hour. It took me just 2 hours to walk around the whole city centre - this famously industrial settlement astonished me with its charm, those red brick buildings rich in architectonic detail, the train station seen inside and outside, the churches, the park make Żyrardów a perfect day trip from Warsaw. The director first thought of Żyrardów but looked all over Mazowsze and ended up shooting in Żyrardów anyway. I personally hope the town to look as beautiful in the film as I saw it with my own eyes. Chances are it will, since Jolanta Dylewska is responsible for cinematography. The town's vice-president commented more movies had been shot there only to represent Puck, Sandomierz od Dubai on the screen, though someone would always move to Żyrardów afterwards. The town president has been offered a role of a doctor, having acted as a boxing coach in the past. 

The plot sounds run-of-the-mill: a drama (Polish film makers' favourite genre), where a boy from a criminal background consoles his mother as his father ends up in jail, himself finding a way out of his predicament in sport - judo in this case. The formula's nothing new in world cinema. The scene whose shooting I had a chance to watch was one in a church - another cliche, this one typical for Polish movies. One scene took about 3 hours to shoot. Between the takes there were breaks for nose-blowing, crying on mum's shoulder, powdering the face, hairspray, instructions. Agnieszka Grochowska said her two film sons were more similar to her than her real children, who didn't resemble her a lot. The director's black belt in judo. The actor embodying the coach, Julek Świeżewski, trained it just for a few months before the shooting, but had a few dozen trainings since January 2023. The two boys do judo, only such boys were cast for the discipline and the ability to sense the partner. So the director found it surprisingly simple to work with them, easier than with adults, no ego, just a shared adventure. It's the two boys' debut - as the older one, Filip, said, they were "thrown in at the deep end" because they got the leading roles. They hadn't known each other earlier. Now the two boys want to become actors: Filip Wilkomirski is considering quitting sport, Tytus Szymczuk (the smaller one) is equally interested in acting and in sport.

 

I had been apprehensive about work conditions on such a set. Those proved to be superb. E.g. the toilets, apart from being spotless and with all civilized amenities, had speakers playing gentle music or sounds of nature. I wish public loos were that luxurious. Drinking water was available all the time to ensure everyone stays hydrated. The set catering offered hearty portions of tasty dishes with a decent range of veggie options to be eaten in an air-conditioned trailer or at a table outside. As one of the producers said: "There's no good movie without good food." Now I'm more optimistic about the film quality. And when it's released in February 2024, in the holy communion scene, when the camera shows the gathered guests, watch the second column on the left - I'm well hidden behind it.

TESCIOWIE 2 (THE IN-LAWS 2)

I've just seen it and will post the review on 15th September when it's released.

THE BOY, THE MOLE, THE FOX AND THE HORSE

Watchable. Is the 2023 Oscar-winning short film truly Oscar-worthy? The drawing and the story are quite simple. But adequate even for small children. The fox doesn't walk like a real one but at least is voiced by Idris Elba. It's profound as the fox tells the boy: "You're enough. Just as you are." And the boy concludes we're here "to love and to be loved". The love between the boy and three different animals permeates this quiet, slow-paced but touching film.

Available online. 

BELFER (THE TEACHER) SEASON 1 EP. 4

Recommended. A double shocker in the opening: the PE teacher's car demolished, the stench of rotten meat outside a house. Later the tension keeps growing due to major changes in the course of action. As individual subplots develop, most protagonists end up at a different place than they started.

The first season is available free of charge on Canal+ online all summer.

PORADY NA ZDRADY 2

Walked out. This romantic comedy is a bummer. Not funny at all. What's more, the script is clumsy, moronic and contrived, dialogues stilted and filled with profanities, costumes weird - even total losers don't dress like that in real life, also nothing and no one looks good in this amateurish cinematography. The whole thing is even worse than "Samiec alfa" ("Alpha male").

COBWEB

Recommended. Don't be fooled by the dull and stereotypical opening. The movie quickly turns frightening in more ways than one. The abusive and weird parents are an original idea, reversing the common horror trope where it's the child that's evil. On the other hand... it's not exactly reversed. It's magnified. Real and supernatural monsters can't be quite distinguished from one another. The elementary school boy is convincingly acted by Woody Norman (known from "C'mon C'mon". The whole story is so plausible, everything internally justified, it's hard to tell the thin line between evil and monstrosity. Keeps you in the clutches of horror steadily, only smoothly intensifying it. The finale leaves no hope. 

LADYBUG & CAT NOIR: THE MOVIE

Watchable. A superhero flick cartooned for children. Also probably because it's easier to draw utterly realistic Paris landmarks: the Seine, Notre-Dame (in its complete, undamaged form), Jardin des Tuileries, building roofs etc. rather than mock a destruction of real ones. All high school and superhero tropes can be found. The downside is the action's interspersed with numerous songs. While George Michael's "Careless Whisper" is used creatively within, plenty of musical-style songs, whether dubbed in Polish or sung in English, like the one along the end credts, all sound the same and are just boring. Bartek Fukiet translated it into Polish so you can rest assured this version's as good as it gets.

THE LAST VOYAGE OF THE DEMETER

Watchable. Woody Norman is a frightened boy in this horror too. It's filmed in Malta, based on a chapter from Bram Stoker's novel "Dracula". It being a literary adaptation is refreshing after plenty of variations of the most famous vampire over the years. The movie, however, is slow-paced, like a 20th century film, not scary, but atmospheric in the way the lengthy sea journey is depicted. The most valiant characters are a black man and a woman, their stories: of obtaining education but being shunned for employment or of being the subject of decisions taken by the count or by the community respectively are touching.

HAUNTED MANSION

Watchable again. As usual, it gave me a chance to catch more detail, e.g. an animated candle. But the main reason was to see the original language version. There are smart lines in the original, in Poland the dubbed and subtitled versions have different translations but neither is a match for the original. "They're already dead!" "They'll be deader." is fine though. LaKeith Stanfield gives a top performance as Ben. No surround sound when watched in an ordinary screening room.

MEG 2: THE TRENCH

Watchable. Adrenaline-pumping entertainment. The megalodons look better this time round, other prehistoric animals are top-notch. In fact it's the megs that aren't entirely up to scratch. At some point you see the teeth are paper etc. The plot is so far-fetched you can't think for a second it might be real. But this time the protagonist is an 'eco warrior' and an honest and an evil corporation clash. And at least the York survives. It's an American-Chinese co-production and the Chinese song at the end credits is better than the English one. But Meiying's character is needless in the story and makes no sense - what is she for?! Shot in Thailand and a digitally altered Greek island. Decent 3D.

TALK TO ME

Watchable. A bunch of teenagers summon ghosts at parties - trite, one original element is that they let them into their bodies. The rest is so derivative it's boring. It drags. It's neither particularly interesting, whether the real life part or the supernatural, nor scary. The finale's cool.

PAST LIVES

Watchable. The writer/director Celine Song's true life story is a movie quiet, slow-paced, yet engaging with subtle irony but also tear-jerking at times. The Korean lines are sometimes a bit off in Polish, especially the one about living the future incarnation where a cause and effect grammar structure is used in Korean, none like that in the Polish translation, which leads me to believe some subtle changes in the meaning have occurred. The plot is a love triangle where cultural differences are stressed in a conversation but don't manifest in actions. The story's banal, though may appeal to people in relationships dissatisfied with their choice of partner.

WIKTORIA 1920 (VICTORY 1920) VR

Recommended. Gripping 360-degree pictures and wartime action. Top-notch acting and dialogue.

DZA-DZA (THE CHAMPION) VR

Recommended. Full 360-degree immersion, top dialogue and characters. The tennis match features superb music.

NIE KOCHAC W TAKA NOC (A NIGHT LIKE THIS) VR

Recommended. Wonderful music, comical action, superb 360-degree shots.

All these VR films can be seen free of charge at the Ministry of Culture gallery. Each is relatively long, up to 30 minutes.

EL FRED QUE CREMA (THE BURNING COLD)

Watchable. Barely. Andorran folklore is much like Polish at WW2 times, shots of the mountains are few and far between. The story, about providing rescue to Jews, is awfully trite. The Andorran clan feuds are the only new element but they sound like in Hispanic soap operas. And it all drags.

SCRAPPER

Director Charlotte Reagan started at the age of 15, making videos for local rappers. 

Watchable. The 12-year-old girl protagonist is a thief and a liar, however resourceful she is at the same time, so it's hard to like her. 27-year-old (now) Harris Dickinson, the star of "Triangle of Sadness", acts as Jason, Georgie's 30-year-old father. He's superb, especially taken how different this role is from his previous. He glues you to the screen, unlike silly comments from the people around Georgie or spiders' talk. Forced originality mars this dysfunctional family drama.

BELFER (THE TEACHER) SEASON 1 EP. 3

Recommended. Some characters show their warmer and/or weirder side. Top-notch, realistic dialogue. Maciej Stuhr as the teacher and Piotr Głowacki as the good cop are superb. A growing number of unknowns. No single cliffhanger needed. It's all gripping.

The first season is available free of charge on Canal+ online all summer.

POWROT (RETURN) SEASON 1 EP. 1

Watchable. The set-up where a chap rises from the grave - literally - is original and promising. Acted by a solid set of professionals and written with good lines, it often turns into comedy, e.g. his mother notices him by chance and wants to build a chapel in the place of the revelation. But, written and directed by men, it's overloaded with sex. At some point it even sees two rabbits having an intercourse. What's worse, different protagonists have sex 3 times in one episode, when at least his widowed wife, his best friend and he himself should be depressed so it's hardly plausible. If the writer had no better idea for the very first episode, what can we count for in the rest of the serial? 

This episode is available free of charge on Canal+ online all summer.

UBERFLIEGEL - DAS GEHEIMNIS DES GROSSEN JUWELS (RICHARD THE STORK AND THE MYSTERY OF THE GREAT JEWEL)

Watchable. Bartek Fukiet's translation - only Polish dubbing is available in Poland - renders the lines better than in the original. Surround sound effects and music help digest the convoluted plot. At least songs are in English.

NO HARD FEELINGS

Recommended. Jennifer Lawrence as 32-year-old Maddie and Andrew Barth Feldman as 19-year-old Percy lead this warm coming-of-age tale. Jennifer Lawrence appears stark naked in one scene and actually looks good, unlike in "Red Sparrow" before. Andrew Barth Feldman is all cuteness. At some point their outfits match colours: her shorts with his top and vice versa to emphasise how great a couple they are. Matthew Broderick makes a cameo as Laird. The underlying issue is class division, that permeates the story. But mostly it's uplifting. 

LASSIE - EIN NEUES ABENTEUER (LASSIE - A NEW ADVENTURE)

Watchable. Offering coffee to dogs?! Even if it was the owner's joke, it gives the impression this drink may be safe for them which is utterly wrong, especially in a kids flick. This Lassie tale is lame. Even if all the people characters are perfect for the target audience, the dogs are made act awfully unnatural hence it's the human characters that are more appealing in this pooch story.

Reviewed from the distributor's German original, English-subtitled screener, cinematic reception might differ.

RUBY GILLMAN, TEENAGE KRAKEN

Watchable. It starts with some Canadian jokes which are spot on in the Kraken context. All high school and growing up in a family woes come to the fore magnified by bodily changes in this sensible yet stereotypical story. Who to trust is vital and drives the plot. Toni Collette voices Agatha Gillman and Jane Fonda does Grandmamah in the original which can't be heard in Poland where it's dubbed in Polish, only the end credits song is in the English original.

KARTKA Z POWSTANIA (A NOTE FROM THE UPRISING) VR

Recommended. Puts you right in the middle of the Warsaw Uprising. The first shots of the ruined city take you aback. The fighters' reality is utterly engaging, with brilliant dialogues, the action's a bit sappy but truly touching. Fully 360-degree.

MS PILSUDSKI - PODWODNA MISJA (MS PILSUDSKI) VR

Recommended. Two parallel stories, both with tongue-in-cheek banter, show the same ship at the time of its grandiosity and as a wreck. Wonderful 360-degree recreation.

KINO (PLEOGRAPH) VR

Recommended. If it hadn't been for the equipment and movie gone missing in WW2, Poles might be recognised as the film creators preceding the Lumière brothers' invention. It's also the only film about shooting one that's actually entertaining. Full 360-degree shots, including the sky. 

All these VR films can be seen free of charge at the Ministry of Culture gallery. Each is relatively long, up to 30 minutes.

AFTER WORK

Recommended. It's not really about the future with no work. It's about global class divisions at present. It's about the present where growing numbers, e.g. 30% of youngsters in Italy form the upper class since 400K euros are deemed sufficient and possible with 1.2-1.5 child born into a family. It's also an assembly of bizarre developments from around the world that indicate how time in history and place in the world render work voluntary or necessary. The lower class are treated like robots. Too much, too little or unloved work frustrates, only 15% people feel involved in their job out of about 1 billion who work. The latter number is vexing too - how come only 1 bn out of over 8 bn people in the world work?! Most don't? Which is the privilege: to work or not to work? How much fulfillment does it give? On the margin it shows how nightclubs or Netflix benefit from these economic changes. Even though I knew about some of it before, it's thought-provoking. 

MON CRIME (THE CRIME IS MINE)

Watchable. Engaging, funny a few times but mostly you admire the smart intrigue where you can never be sure which way the story will turn and who will say what. Wonderfully acted. Just not amusing enough for a comedy.

BARBIE

Recommended. Starts with the Warner Bros logo turned pink. Shortly after, I was taken aback at how profound and serious this pink movie was. From Greta Gerwig I expected an anodyne, maybe subtlety, but it's direct, explicit, complex. Every line is so smart, e.g. the one about putting masks on to preserve patriarchy. Margot Robbie amazes. She's made look but, even more importantly, moves like a doll. How could they have ever considered casting anyone else?! She gives a truly Oscar-worthy performance.