Leon Niemczyk Movies
Cinema of the surreal icon David Lynch follows up the success of his critically acclaimed 2001 feature Mulholland Drive with this dark mystery, shot on a handheld Sony PD150 digital video recorder. It is the tale of an actress whose personality becomes increasingly fragmented as she delves ever deeper into her work for a high-profile filmmaker. Kingsley (Jeremy Irons) is a director looking to adapt for the screen a Polish gypsy folktale that was previously stalled when the two leads were viciously murdered. Having offered the female lead to devoted actress Nikki (Laura Dern), Kingsley warns her male co-star, Devon (Justin Theroux), to maintain his professional distance, as Nikki's husband (Peter J. Lucas) is known to be notoriously possessive. As the passionate co-stars quickly cross the line and become lovers, Nikki's slowly slipping sense of reality causes her to eventually become lost in her character while the mysterious story of a Polish couple unfurls, and a trio of giant stage-bound rabbits (voices of Naomi Watts, Scott Coffey, and Laura Harring) lounge around on the sofa and tend to their domestic duties. Shot over the course of two and a half years and without a formalized script, Lynch's hallucinogenic look at a doomed film project features all of the abstract imagery and strange symbolism that have long made the director a favorite of film fans who embrace his disorienting approach to unconventional storytelling. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laura Dern, Jeremy Irons, (more)
The handsome heir to a successful Polish brewery becomes corrupted by a decadent princess and her psychotic, sexually salacious, homosexual hunchback jester in Body Without Soul director Wiktor Grodecki's daring adaptation of Stanislaw Igncay Witkiewicz's controversial, 1930s-era novel detailing the ultimate downfall of western civilization. China has set into motion a relentless invasion of Eastern Europe, and as the chiseled idealistic heir ponders the implications of such an act of warfare, the beautiful princess Irina seizes the opportunity to lead him into a life of sexual deviance while setting her sights on his vast fortune. The princess isn't the only one that the confused eighteen-year-old heir has to worry about though, and as the mad monk jester makes a play for his purity, it seems that there is no turning back from a world where war and sex have become permanent partners. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cezary Pazura, Michal Lewandowski, (more)
- 1993
- R
A cut-rate actor tires of trying to boost his career through normal channels and so decides to murder his way to the top in this lurid melodrama. Stand-in Victor Brandt, starts out by killing the rising international star Werner Soehnen during the filming of a historical romance. Sure enough, he gets the lead and ends up on a European estate learning horseback riding tricks from stunt coordinator/aspiring actress Tammy Brandon. She is angry that the part she was to play in the film was stolen by the pill-popping blonde, Crista Kelly. Victor is attracted to Tammy, and simultaneously woos her while continuing to murder the producer and his girl friend. Meanwhile, the mistress of the estate, Greta begins to suspect that something is horribly amiss with Victor. She tries to warn Tammy, but Tammy, thinking that lesbian Greta is only saying this out of jealousy, disbelieves her. Poor Greta doesn't live too long after that. Eventually Crista arrives and is immediately suspicious of the recent deaths. This suspicion leads Victor to tell Tammy the truth, leaving her to decide whether to join or stop his killing spree. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1992
- NR
This Academy Award-nominated Belgian drama follows a late 19th-century priest's courageous battle to end the exploitation of child workers in Aalst, Belgium. Father Daens' crusade begins shortly after he is transferred to the impoverished Belgian region. Aghast at the working conditions he sees in area mills, Daens publishes an inflammatory letter in his brother's newspaper. Among his many accusations and condemnations are those that not only children such as the little girl Nini are being overworked in unhealthy conditions, they are also being sexually abused by supervisors. The workers launch a widespread public outcry that is immediately quelled by the upper-class mill owners who fire all rebels and hire more children and women (at even lower wages) in their place. Thus begins a long, tragic battle between Daens and the poor and Belgium's ruling class. Aided by the Church itself, the monarches and the rich prevail, leaving Daens disillusioned and just as impoverished as those for whom he has sacrificed everything. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jan Decleir, Gerard Desarthe, (more)
- 1988
Stefan (Jan Peszek) is a scriptwriter who searches for someone to produce his next play in this film-industry spoof. Hounded by actors, his wife, and insufferable producers, Stefan runs into financial problems with his dentist and auto mechanic. He daydreams about producing his own features that include a send up of Gene Kelly's dance in Singing In The Rain along with a musical, a porno movie, a romantic melodrama, and a gangster feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jan Peszek, Grazyna Barszczewska, (more)
- 1986
This meticulously produced 153-minute character study explores the iniquities of class consciousness in contemporary Poland. A teacher of modest means moves in with a wealthy family in order to tutor their good-looking daughter. Love blooms, but the family is convinced that the tutor is merely a fortune hunter -- and besides, how dare he try to emulate his betters? The film is based on a novel by Andrzej Mencwel, who co-wrote the screenplay. Sceny Dzieciece a Zycia Prowincji (Childhood Scenes of Provincial Life) was directed by actor Tomasz Zygaldo, who resists the temptation to appear in the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1986
The sorry condition of a state farm director's unhappy life is the subject of this drama. Gregori (Maciej Goraj) has had great success running the large farm, but his personal life is in shambles. His wife left him to go live in Canada years ago, and his young son would obviously rather live with his mother. Gregori has a superficial sexual relationship with a woman but no other romantic contacts. His closest relationships are with four influential godfathers who raised him after his mother died while giving birth, but he longs for better, more affectionate ties with his son. Then even Gregori's skill as farm director is called into question when he makes a bad decision. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maciej Góraj, Franciszek Pieczka, (more)
- 1985
In a murky, sometimes confusing tale about a future dystopia in which people are waiting -- and waiting -- for a rescue ship called the Ark, there are several good one-liners, but they are outnumbered by the puzzling riddles and symbolism that permeate the story. The flotsam and jetsam of humanity are huddled together in an underground labyrinth after civilization as we know it has been obliterated by the Bomb. The survivors are protected by a dome which a repairman notes is bound to crack before the Ark arrives because it was constructed under a one-year plan. The hero of the film searches for the origins of the myth about the Ark and along the way falls in love with a prostitute. It seems the world's oldest profession has also survived the nuclear holocaust. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jerzy Stuhr, Krystyna Janda, (more)
- 1984
Based on a novel by Vladimir Korner, Zanik Samoty Berhof takes place just as World War II has ended, and the Germans who live in Sudentenland now find themselves citizens of Czechoslovakia. Hitler annexed that area during the war, and it was simply given back after the war. Rather than peacefully accept the situation, some Germans continued to fight in this northwestern border region, refusing to accept the end of the war. In this story, several of these people end up at the Berhof farm, among them is a nun who traded her habit for a gun -- another is a prostitute, another an alcoholic. A sick mother as well as a young and miserable woman in her teens comprise the rest of the group, plus a few visitors. When the mayor of the town decides that these "warmongers" have to be handled immediately, the fate of the people on the farm seems bleak indeed. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jana Brejchova, Ladislav Krivacek, (more)
- 1984
Based on a true incident that took place in Switzerland in 1982, director (Janusz Kidawa) tells the tale of hostage-taking at a Polish embassy, using West Germany as a setting. Four men storm the embassy, one is just a criminal, one a crazed killer, one a student as yet unsure of politics, and one an idealist. Although the four briefly succeed, their action inadvertently leads to the death of a secretary and another white-collar worker -- and when the embassy is entered by the police, each of the four react differently. Weak in storyline and character development, there is not much to recommend this feature by Kidawa, as it is certainly not a par with his 1980 Sinful Life of Francisek Bula. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stanislaw Michalski
- 1983
In this routine Polish drama about the end of World War II, a barber goes back to his village to visit his home -- he has not seen his wife in five years and in spite of sending her a few dozen letters, she has never responded. As he approaches the village, and after his arrival, he comes to find out that his wife never received his letters, thought he had died, has remarried, and is involved in the land reforms that her new husband has instigated. Everything becomes more complex for the barber and his "wife" when her new husband is hauled away by an armed group of men and the barber's loyalty to the land and his Catholic faith is brought to the test. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Zygmunt Malanowicz
- 1981
Designed by a shameless official as an anti-capitalist propaganda crusade, a three-day marathon race is sabotaged by a dissident who steals the running shoe of the hand-picked favorite. Budny and Stolar are two particular contestants who are highlighted here. Budny is a man with a hidden agenda; his father is held prisoner by the militia and Budny wishes to run the race in order to get close enough to the president -- who will present the awards to the winners -- to make a plea for his father's release. Conversely, Stolar is a self-serving loser who finagles his entry into the race and then turns his lecherous attention to a young woman working for the Party. A vicious indictment of Polish Communist Party officials of the Stalinist era, this symbolic film remained on the shelf for six years before being officially released to appear at the Sydney Film Festival in 1987. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tadeusz Bradecki, Jaroslaw Kopaczewski, (more)
- 1981
When a Polish fishing vessel sets out for a long-distance run to the Canary Islands, a crab gets caught in the nets as they are reeled in -- a bad omen for the coming voyage. Sure enough, once at the Islands, the sailors are told they have to stay at sea for a few months longer -- and each sailor has his own reaction to that unhappy news. One fisherman in particular has been thinking of his wife Joanna and her insistence that he give up his sea-faring life and find a job on solid land, near home. He weighs the desires of Joanna and the bad omen of the crab, against the profession he inherited from his father before him and is unable to work out a decision. Once he does reach home port, Joanna is there with an ultimatum, and the young fisherman must finally choose whether or not to break with the past. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jan Nowicki, Liliana Glabczynska, (more)
- 1980
Death Sentence is a standard honor-before-love drama set in 1943 Poland. Wojciech Wysocki plays a member of an underground "hit squad", dedicated to ferreting out and liquidating Nazi sympathizers. Wysocki undergoes a conflict of interest when he falls in love with singer Doris Kuntsmann, the mistress of a German officer. Eventually he casts his full lot with the Cause and kills his beloved. Death Sentence was originally released in Poland in 1981 as Wyrok Smierci. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wojciech Wysocki, Jerzy Bonczak, (more)
- 1978
Anton (Ulrich Thein) is a charming con-man, or at the very least a skilled mechanic with a very flexible attitude about the law. After the Second World War, he sets himself up in business in East Germany, transforming old worn-out junk machines into beautifully functioning automobiles, tractors and trucks. He becomes well-known and respected, but is too willing to deliver goods to collective farms preferentially, in return for a little extra payment. Despite his savings in West German banks, he is convicted for these misdeeds but swiftly rises to prominence once again when he applies his manipulative genius to making the East German economic system work effectively. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ulrich Thein, Anna Dymna, (more)
Gottfried Kolditz's 1973 Apachen constitutes an East German Western, influenced by (and made in the mold of) classic American cinematic forays into the Old West, such as the works of Howard Hawks and John Ford. The picture covers some of the same territory as Robert Aldrich in his 1972 Ulzana's Raid. It begins with the mass slaughter of a group of Apaches at the dawn of the Mexican American War, and then follows Apache chief Ulzana as he rallies his fellow warriors, hell-bent on bloodthirsty revenge. Gojko Mitic, Willi Schrade, Colea Rautu, Gerry Wolff, Fred Delmare, Leon Niemczyk, and Rolf Hoppe co-star. Kolditz followed it up with a sequel, the 1974 Ulzana. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gojko Mitic
- 1971
Following his release from prison for "diversion" of government property, Michal (Tadeusz Jancsar) gets a job at a plant where his thieving co-workers know about his conviction. Instead of going along with their ways, however, it becomes clear that Michal has changed the way he goes about things. When he hires someone who was in prison with him and weans him from stealing, it is abundantly clear that he is a changed man. Indeed, so evident is his rehabilitation that he is made the head of the whole factory. Janczar's solid performance leavens this Polish film, which might otherwise have been perceived as preachy. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1969
A man races against time to complete his new computer innovation before he is claimed by death. He rises above political hurdles as he realizes his grave heart condition allows him to escape any penalties or government interference. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leon Niemczyk, Jutta Hoffmann, (more)
- 1967
In this 1967 Polish adaptation of the Nutcracker, young Frycek and Marysia receive a nutcracker for Christmas. Soon their toy comes alive and leads them on a fanciful journey. Leon Niemczyk, who starred in Roman Polanski's Knife in the Water, is featured as the children's father. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wienczyslaw Glinski
- 1967
A group of workers building a dam combine forces for the good of the country to complete the project in this adventure drama dripping with thick socialist propaganda. A party official who follows the rules to the extreme tries to motivate the workers. When the workers suggest everyone throw away their money to prove a point, only the director casts his cash to the wind. The workers gain respect for their new boss and take up a collection to cover his losses when he proves he is true to the socialist ideology for the good of the people. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wieslaw Golas, Franciszek Pieczka, (more)
- 1966
A man (Andrzej Lapicki) reflects on why his wife and child left him in this drama with comic overtones directed by Jan Rybowski. The man is a concentration camp survivor from World War II who admits to himself he is willing to be underhanded in order to get ahead. His past experiences give him a wry but realistic assessment of his new situation as he contemplates his future. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andrzej Lapicki, Lucyna Winnicka, (more)
Alfons (Zbigniew Cybulski) is a young army captain who meets two women of Moorish ancestry at what appears to be a deserted inn near Madrid. They tell Alfons he is the descendant of a noble family and that he must undergo a series of challenging missions to prove himself. A magician tries to take his soul, and he is visited by ghosts near the mountains of Madrid. Author Jan Poticki committed suicide a year after the symbolic and allusive book this movie was based on was published. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Zbigniew Cybulski, Franciszek Pieczka, (more)
