Wojciech Pszoniak Movies

An ordinary working woman helps to spark a revolution in this historical drama inspired by a true story. Agnieszka Kowalska (Katharina Thalbach) has been working as a welder in the shipyards of Gdansk, Poland, since 1950, struggling to support her son since divorcing her husband. Working conditions at the shipyard have always been difficult and dangerous, and in 1961 Agnieszka begins speaking out, confronting her bosses about the rights of the workers; her fellow employees are at once grateful to her and worried about what might happen if she rocks the boat too hard. Agnieszka's personal life takes a turn for the better when she meets and marries Kazimierz Walczak (Dominique Horwitz), a kind man who moves into her neighborhood. However, after a serious accident at the shipyard claims the lives of several employees and their families are denied pension benefits, Agnieszka takes the bosses to task and begins organizing a union to protect the rights of the workers, an effort that slowly evolves into Poland's rebellious Solidarity movement. Directed by Volker Schlöndorff, Strike (aka Strajk -- Die Heldin von Danzig) was based on the true story of Polish labor advocate Anna Walentynowicz, though Walentynowicz has publicly criticized the film for certain historical inaccuracies. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

In this satirical comedy drama from France, white-collar workaholic Paul (Vincent Lindon) and his high-strung wife Helene (Catherine Frot) are driving to a party one evening when a young woman leaps into the path of their car, crying for help. Paul refuses to let her into the car, and soon several men catch up with the woman and begin beating her savagely. Paul insists on staying out of the matter, but Helene feels some sense of responsibility for what happened, and begins spending most of her time at the hospital where the woman remains unconscious. In time, it's determined that the woman's name is Noémie (Rachida Brakni), she's 22 years old, and works as a prostitute. By this time, Helene has become obsessed with protecting Noémie, and when a strange man (Wojtek Pszoniak) attempts to sign her out of the hospital, claiming he's her uncle, Helene sneaks Noémie out posing as a nurse and takes her to her mother-in-law's country house to recover. Eventually, Noémie is well enough to tell her harrowing story -- she was brought to France from Algeria by her father, along with her sister, and fell into life as a streetwalker shortly after learning that her family had sold her hand in marriage her to a man back in Algeria. Director Coline Serreau shot Chaos using digital video equipment -- and was impressed enough with the experience that she announced she had no interest in shooting on 35 mm film ever again. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Andrzej Wajda, the most acclaimed Polish filmmaker of the post-WWII era, returned from exile to make films again in Poland in the 1990s, including this saga based on the novel by Jerzy Andrzjewski. The English translation is Holy Week, and the film is set during the week before Easter in WWII Poland. Irena Lilien (Beata Fudalej), a young Jewish woman, escapes from the Warsaw ghetto where the Nazis are persecuting Jews and sending them off to extermination. She seeks out her former lover, Jan Malecki (Wojciech Malajkat). Jan and his wife Anna (Magdalena Warzecha), a Catholic who hates the Germans, agree to shelter Irena from the authorities, though in so doing, they are risking their own lives. Jan's younger brother leaves the house and joins the Resistance. Irena chafes at her virtual house arrest and soon attracts the attention of neighbors and a local black-market businesswoman, whose husband tries to rape Irena. Eventually, the leaders of the neighborhood call for Irena to be turned over to the Nazis. The situation boils over, pitting neighbor against neighbor and illustrating how the Nazis drove rifts in the Polish community. ~ Michael Betzold, Rovi

After World War II, due to a longstanding prior agreement among the victorious Allies, displaced citizens of the various countries were returned to their homeland of origin whether or not they wanted to be. There were almost no exceptions to this rule. As a result, several million anti-communist citizens of Eastern Bloc nations were handed over to the not-so tender mercies of their native countries, now under communist rule. Only one nation in all of Europe failed to honor this agreement: the tiny Duchy of Luxembourg. The story of this film is based on a true incident, and the furor it caused. In 1945, the Russian general (Malcom McDowell) of a small detachment of five hundred Eastern Bloc soldiers who fought on the Axis (German) side, led them into the (neutral) Duchy, which had an announced policy of granting asylum. These refugees were swifly assimilated into the everyday life of the country and, despite enormous pressure from the great military powers of the day (particularly Russia), Luxembourg refused to relinquish them to almost certain death. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In the late-18th century, it was unusual for anyone to become a master craftsman before the age of twenty, much less a master clockmaker. In this story, eighteen-year-old master clockmaker Max Bardo (Jonathan Zaccai) has come to the attention of a wealthy aristocratic inventor, who has hired him to repair the clocks in his chateau. When the young man arrives there, the inventor has died, but he is kept on to do the job he was hired for. Before long, he becomes an innocent pawn in the elaborate games of the inventor's upper-class heirs and associates, who are seeking to use the young man in their quest for a legendary device made by the dead man. Soon, Max winds up in a duel with one of the aristocrats. His challenger dies during the duel, but not at Max's hands. Despite the fact that a good number of the onlookers know perfectly well that he is innocent of the killing, the consequences (including an elaborate revenge scheme) fit their plans perfectly. Then as now, the powerless innocent have little defense against the subtle plots of depraved pillars of society. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

The life of Polish pediatrician Janusz Korczak (Wojtek Pszoniak) is the subject of Andrzej Wajda's docudrama. Also known as an author who wrote primarily for young readers, Korczak's name became legend as a result of the Jewish orphanage he established in Warsaw. When the invasion of the Nazis in 1939 forced him to move his students to the ghetto, he struggled on without provisions or adequate space, refusing to give in to Nazi pressures. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

Francois (Pierre-Loup Rajot) has just moved into a small community in the French Pyrenees mountains. He applies for work at a small logging mill, run with great craftsmanship but indifferent business skill by Favier (Guy Marchand), the son-in-law of the owner, Mathieu (Serge Reggiani). Francois has an ally in another man who works at the mill, Cyuri (Wotjek Pszoniak), who had formerly been his mother's lover. With his help, he easily settles into his job. He also quickly becomes the lover of his boss's wife Marie (Julie Jezequel). This leads to complications for all concerned, but as decent people, they find themselves at something of a standoff and are unable to resolve the situation easily. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

The "two" of the title are concert promoter Gerard Depardieu and real estate agent Marushka Detmers. Thrown together by chance and indirection, Depardieu and Detmars begin a romance. Claude Zidi directs Deux with the same breezy aplomb he has applied on his earlier wacky comedies. Zidi also produced and co-wrote the film, which hasn't yet gotten the American distribution afforded most Gerard Depardieu vehicles. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Udo Samel plays Franz Schubert in this film biography that is a grim look at the darker side of the legendary composer. Schubert is released from a hospital-asylum after being treated for a sexually transmitted disease. After visiting his strict father, he goes to live with his wealthy friend Schober (Daniel Olbrychski). Franz is followed by Kajetan (Wojtek Psoniak), the crippled beggar he befriended during his hospital stay. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

This somber drama chronicles the writings of Paltiel Kossover (Michel Jonasz), a Rumanian Jew who was incarcerated in a Stalinist prison. Zupanev (Erland Josephson) is a sympathetic court registrar who smuggles the documents and later presents them to the poet's son Grisha (Vincent David). ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

This West German film was first released in 1985 under the title Bittere Ernte. Armin-Mueller Stahl plays a Polish farmer living under the wartime Nazi occupation. Stahl isn't too offended at the prospect of answering to the Germans; in fact, he has profited by confiscating the property of his neighbor, a wealthy Jew. His conscience doesn't disturb him until a starving Jewish woman (Elisabeth Trissenaar) stumbles onto his property. At first Stahl shelters her, but his baser instincts surface; she is in no position to refuse when he ultimately rapes her. She even comes to fall in love with Stahl--and kills herself when another woman moves in with him. Stahl survives the war with health and wealth intact, only mildly disturbed by the misery he has caused. This Oscar-nominated film was to have been lensed in director Agnieszka Holland's native Poland; upon the imposition of martial law, production was switched to Sweden. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this documentary on the filming of director Andrzej Wajda's movie Danton, Polish director Tomasz Pobog-Malinowski went to France and documented the filming of the confrontation between Robespierre and Danton in the French National Assembly and the guillotine scenes (both men were guillotined a few months apart, in 1794). In focus is how director Wajda intensely involves himself in all details of the action: cameras, actors, and technical support, yet he never loses respect for anyone. On a more subtle level, a Polish actor plays the violent Robespierre who promoted the infamous "Reign of Terror" when thousands were guillotined, and a Frenchman plays the moderate Danton, who wished to curb the bloodletting. Other subtle parallels are drawn between the French Revolution of the 1790s and the Polish upheavals led by Solidarity in the early 1980s. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi